How Are You Making Thanksgiving Different?
Don’t Give Up on Thanksgiving, Do Something New
After last Thanksgiving, this is what I asked myself, “How are you making Thanksgiving different?”
Normal is our biggest problem this Thanksgiving.
Normal even when it comes to Thanksgiving is a problem. When we allow normal to be our norm, that means what God wants for us is on the back-burner. The best of what we can have has been placed on the back-burner. Haven’t you heard that popular scripture that says “I am doing a new thing.” 1
It goes something like this. It’s written that these are words that came directly from God. He starts by saying forget the things from the past. 2 “I am doing a new thing!” 1 This opens the door to a question. If God is doing a new thing, wouldn’t you want to be a part of it? Secondly, if God does something new, shouldn’t you?
Back to normal being a problem. There is no way to be normal and God’s in the driver seat. There’s a famous statement that attest to this. If any person is connected to Him, that person becomes something new. That person becomes new because he/she does away with old things. 3 If you want new, then you have to put old away. They say that in order for a child to become an adult, a child must put away childish things and then something new happens. What’s that? The child becomes an adult, something new. 4
Changing a holiday may not be easy.
It’s hard to make holiday changes, so how do you do it without destroying the holiday? There’s a lot one must consider when making changes to special days like Thanksgiving. There are the traditions that have been honored through the past. However, have you ever considered who started the traditions you currently honor? Have you considered who’s left of the people who started such a tradition you honor in the first place? Last question, could a new tradition make Thanksgiving better and more inclusive?
As difficult as it might sound to make traditional changes, this year we have an unusual advantage. COVID19. Last Thanksgiving we never would have imagined being “quarantined” or asked to social-distance. Due to COVID19, traditions have been forced or strongly encouraged to change. Therefore, take advantage of making changes that can make this holiday that much more meaningful this year and for the years to come. Since God’s doing a new thing, why not do a new thing?
Two Questions You Can Ask to Make Thanksgiving Brand New:
- What would I have changed last Thanksgiving?
What could have been different about last year’s Thanksgiving? This will be your starting point for preparing to make your next Thanksgiving different. There are always things that present themselves that we wish we could have altered. Use that thinking to improve your next one. - What reflections did I make last Thanksgiving?
After an event is the best time to reflect. That’s what I do because it’s fresh on our minds and in our thoughts. Most everyone I know has after Thanksgiving reflections. They enjoyed something from the meal or they enjoyed the company of a person. Don’t let those ideas that God has planted in your heart go to waste. The more you do that, the less you’ll have such opportunities to make something old, new.
It’s Thanksgiving y’all!
Jim Rohn has a book called the “Seasons of Life” where he makes a sobering statement that spring comes once a year and you only get so many Springs to take advantage of in a lifetime. You can count the Springs. I know it’s natural to think of seasons as an endless supply, but that’s not true for the individual and the same holds true for Thanksgiving. Don’t waste another. Make this Thanksgiving a new one. Make next Thanksgiving a new one. Make everything Thanksgiving a new one!
Question: what are you hoping will happen this Thanksgiving?
Give your Thanksgiving a little life, a little hope, and enjoy the one you have. “Thanks” for visiting NoLongerCommon.com. Share this Thanksgiving message with a friend. From our family to yours, have an awesome Thanksgiving.
Reference #1: Isaiah 43:19 NIV, Bible.com, accessed November 20, 2020, https://www.bible.com/bible/111/ISA.43.19.NIV
Reference #2: Isaiah 43:18 NIV, Bible.com, accessed November 20, 2020, https://www.bible.com/bible/111/ISA.43.18.NIV
Reference #3: 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT, Bible.com, accessed November 20, 2020, https://www.bible.com/bible/116/2CO.5.17.NLT
Reference #4: 1 Corinthians 13:11 NLT, Bible.com, accessed November 20, 2020, https://www.bible.com/bible/116/1CO.13.11.NLT
All Scripture references used by permission, see our Scripture copyrights.
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