The Blessing Jar

My normally quiet house is bustling with activity as I’ve got lots of company spending the week here, with more expected this weekend. It looks like we’ll have fifteen to twenty people of all ages together for Thanksgiving dinner.

Last year, after a wonderful meal around candlelit tables, we gathered in the living room on sofas, chairs, and the floor. I printed out the following questions on slips of paper and put them in a “Blessing Jar.”

We passed the Blessing Jar around, and one at a time, different people (including children) picked a question out of the jar. Then, a few shared their response to that question. It was a sweet time of reflecting on God’s goodness and blessings in our lives over the past year.

Here are the questions I included in the Blessing Jar: 

• Name a song that has been a blessing to you this year.
• Name one friend who has been a blessing to you this year.
• What is one book that has been a blessing to you this year?
• Share a Bible verse that has been a blessing to you this year.
• Share one special memory from the past year for which you are grateful.
• What is something about your church that has been a blessing to you this year?
• How have you seen the heart of Jesus in a member of your family?
• What is one financial or material blessing from the past year for which you are grateful?
• How have you seen God at work in the life of an unbeliever this year?
• What is one area of your life where you have seen God at work this year?
• What is one answer to prayer you have experienced this year?
• Share something from the past year that has been “hard,” for which you are grateful.

You might want to make a Blessing Jar this year, and add some questions of your own. Either way, I’d love to hear how you celebrate Thanksgiving and make it meaningful for your family and friends.