Monthly Archives: November 2023

10 Tips for Making Friendsgiving Easy

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Tuesday night was our Friendsgiving with our small-turned-large group. We used to be a small group meeting at our house, but it’s grown too much to be able to meet there. So now, we meet at the church on Tuesday nights. This past Tuesday was our Friendsgiving.

*Note: we did a terrible job taking pictures for the night. We only got a few, and none with the entire group.

Growing Our Group

I remember hearing about Friendsgiving for the first time several years ago. Instantly, I knew I wanted to do it; I loved the idea of having Thanksgiving with friends on a different day than the holiday and saving Thanksgiving for family. I loved it so much, I wanted to do it. The problem was, I didn’t have a group to do it with, and I didn’t really know how to start.

Fast forward several years. We hosted over thirty people for our Friendsgiving this week and had such an amazing time together. We laughed hard and had delicious food. It was just a really good time. Tuesday night was the culmination of the last several years.

We didn’t grow that group overnight. It’s taken the last few years to grow our group. We started small, inviting just two couples over to our house every Tuesday night for dinner and a Bible study. Over the years, the group has grown into what it is today. Now, we’re a loud, rowdy bunch.

Starting Your Own Friendsgiving

If you love the idea of Friendsgiving but don’t know how to get started, here’s how to get started in two easy steps.

How to Start Your Own Friendsgiving

  1. Start small. Invite one or two couples or families over to your house for a Thanksgiving meal on a day or night separate from Thanksgiving. (That way you can save Thanksgiving day for family.)
  2. Have each person bring two dishes. I learned this the hard way. I used to make everything myself. It’s so much easier and more fun when everybody brings food. You also get to vary up the food. At our Friendsgiving, we had turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, beans and rice, Cajun fried chicken, mac and cheese, green beans, appetizer foods, pumpkin bars, and more.

That’s how to start; then here are a few tips to make it run smoothly. These are just some of the things we’ve learned over the years of hosting Friendsgiving.

10 Tips to Making Friendsgiving Easy and Uncomplicated

  1. Use paper products and plastic silverware and cups so nobody gets stuck washing dishes. I usually get mine every year from either Dollar Tree or Walmart. Then I use my fall decor to decorate the tables, so I don’t have to spend a lot of money.
  2. Add an easy, tangible way to show thankfulness. We printed off “I am thankful for” cards and spread them out on the table with a few pens and markers. Everybody wrote down what they were thankful for, and we just left them on the table to add to the decor. There are tons of free ones online.
  3. Use plastic tablecloths so you can roll everything up and just throw it out.
  4. Have something for the kids to do to keep them busy, so the adults can have a good time too. This year, our youth leader took all the kids for us, which was a huge blessing! Other years, we’ve printed off fun worksheets, bought crafts from Hobby Lobby, and also put a bunch of fun Thanksgiving picture books from the library on the tables for kids to read. Another fun idea is to buy one of those tablecloths that has activities on it that the kids can color and do at the table while they wait for food.
  5. Don’t have a plan other than to eat and fellowship and have a good time. If you get a chance to play a game, go for it. But it’s okay to just sit and relax and fellowship too.
  6. Don’t plan it too close to Thanksgiving Day. I remember one year, we had our Friendsgiving the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving. That was a terrible idea. We weren’t hungry at all on Thursday, nor were we in the mood to cook again after we’d cooked all day the day before.
  7. Make it a relaxed affair. Don’t make people feel like they have to dress up. That’s where the paper plates and tablecloths come in. Keep it easy and relaxed. The more formal it is, the more nervous people get. Just keep it relaxed so everyone can have a good time.
  8. Pick easy dishes. Don’t try something you’ve never tried before that has a million steps. You’ll be stressed and nervous and won’t make for a great host. Instead, go for tried and true recipes. Every year, I make mashed potatoes for our group and one of the turkeys. It’s just what we do. I also make these pumpkin bars from Pioneer Woman that are always a hit! For drinks, we always buy Canada Dry Cranberry Ginger Ale. It’s yummy and easy and looks festive.
  9. This year, we made snowballs, chocolate-covered pretzels, and acorns. Actually, my girls made all those. Having fun treats like these are great for kids, and it’s a good way to get your own kids involved. (see the treats below)
  10. Choose to just enjoy the night. I used to get so stressed, trying to make everything perfect, that I didn’t get to enjoy the night. Now, I just go with the flow. Whatever happens happens. Maybe we don’t have stuffing or maybe somebody forgets to bring something. Maybe we don’t have plastic knives for anybody to cut the ham (that happened on Tuesday.) What did we do? We used our forks and sometimes fingers to do the cutting for us. We made it work. It’s all about just enjoying the night.

Do you celebrate Friendsgiving? What works for you? I’d love to hear about it!

More Encouragement

Looking for more ways to make Thanksgiving week special? Check out my post, Thanksgiving Prompts for Each Day Next Week.

5 Ways to Know that Now is the Right Time

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Collecting Leaves

We worked on a leaf collection this week for school. I think it’s probably my favorite project of the year. When I was young, it was my favorite project for school; and I love collecting leaves even more now as an adult. I love wondering through the woods, looking for the most beautiful leaves in reds, golds, yellows, oranges, and all the shades in between.

I sat for a few minutes in the car before I got out at one of our parks. As I sat and watched, the wind blew and leaves began to fall all around the park. It was absolutely beautiful, and it made me think about the process of falling leaves.

Leaves Falling

What I think is amazing is that leaves stay on the trees all throughout spring and summer. During those two seasons, the winds blow, storms come, rain dumps on them, and still they hold on. The leaves don’t fall off the trees. Yet, as soon as winter gets close, the tiniest little breeze can shake the leaves off the trees.

Why do leaves fall so easily this time of year and yet hang on so tightly to their branches even in the midst of terrible storms earlier in the year? It all comes down to one thing.

Timing.

Timing

It’s such a good picture of how God works in our lives. We can try to do things on our own, in our own power, and it just doesn’t work out. God leads us to do something or to take on something, and it doesn’t take off. We get tired, discouraged, and want to give up.

And then there’s the time when things just go forward, and everything comes together. God works in ways you couldn’t dream of, and you sit back and watch him work. What’s the difference between the two?

Timing.

Different Seasons

You might have the right idea, the right plan, and the right people; but it may just not be the right timing. And sometimes we don’t figure that out until it comes together later, and we sit back and see…oh, this is when it was supposed to happen.

So how do you know when it’s the right timing? How do you know if the right timing is now or if you should wait? The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us that life is all about seasons; there’s a right time to do things.

For everything there is a season,
    a time for every activity under heaven.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 NLT

God’s Guiding

The only way to know God’s perfect timing is to pray about it, to seek his face and his guidance. I often pray through Proverbs 3:5,6 when I’m trying to get God’s guidance.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.

Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take.

Proverbs 3:5,6 NLT

Here are five ways that’s God’s used in my life over the years to help me know if it’s the right time for something.

5 Ways to that Now is the Right Time

  1. You feel in your heart of hearts like God is leading you to do this now.
  2. Everything you are reading in your morning time routine, is pointing you in this direction.
  3. The sermons you listen to, and the books you read all seem to be saying things that point in this direction.
  4. Your spouse and or other family members are on board and supportive.
  5. God has already started to move on your behalf, even if it’s something small.

If you can relate to these five ways, then it’s time to move forward! Step out in faith and see what God is going to do!

More Encouragement

For more encouragement, check out my post, Knowing When to Wait and When to Move Forward or check out Matt’s book, Momentum.

God’s Given You the Creativity You Need

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The Creativity in Ecclesiastes

I am currently reading through the book of Ecclesiastes in my morning time routine. Ecclesiastes is quite possibly my favorite book in the Bible; it rates right up there with some of my favorites like I Peter, Psalms, and a few others. As an author and creative, Ecclesiastes resonates with me on that artistic and inspirational level and the creative side of me.

There are a few verses in chapter eleven that I love that are both an inspiration and a challenge to me. The first one is verse 4.

Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never plant.

Ecclesiastes 11:4 NLT

Time to Go Forward

When you step out to do whatever it is God has for you, it takes faith. It’s the kind of faith that never really goes away. You have to keep stepping out in faith. You keep taking the next step and the next. If you worry about the what-if’s, you won’t get anywhere. There’s a time to plan and prepare and pray; and then the time comes when you have to simply go do. It may not be perfect, but it’s time to move.

There’s a saying that says, “If you wait for all green lights, you’ll never get anywhere in life.” There comes a point and time where you have to just go.

The Mystery of God’s Activity

A few verses later, the author of Ecclesiastes writes these words:

Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.

Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both.

Ecclesiastes 11:5,6 NLT

I love the comparison the author gives here. There is so much mystery to a baby being born that we can’t possibly understand the intricacies of it. So it is the same way with God. We can’t possibly know and understand all that he is doing and where and how he is working.

Doing our Creative Part

Then my favorite part comes in verse six. Since we can’t possibly know how God is working, we have to work hard to do our creative part. We must work hard and diversify our work because we don’t know where God is going to bless. Start different ministries, tap into different sources, use your creative ability to create different products, meet more people, and use the abilities God has given you to do the work he’s called you to. We do all this, not knowing which part he is going to bless, or which part will be fruitful.

That’s okay. That’s not our part to know. It’s our part to simply be creative and do the work he’s called us to do to the best of our ability. Then, we watch as God blesses. And if God works in your life in the way he’s worked in mine, it’s never where you think the blessing will come from.

Use Your Creativity

Wherever you’re at today, whatever God has called you to do…don’t give up. It may seem like it’s not worth it. The days are long; the work is hard, and there doesn’t seem to be any reward. Let me encourage you with this: You don’t know where God’s working. You can’t possibly know what God is doing, but you can trust. Simply choose to keep at it; keep using the abilities he’s given you and the creativity he’s gifted you with. You can work hard in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, because you don’t know what or where God is going to bless. But he will bless, and you can trust in that.

For More Encouragement

A great book on this topic is Called to Create by Jordan Rayner. I loved this read. It’s free if you have KindleUnlimited!