How to Host a Thanksgiving Worship Gathering
The holidays are a time for hosting and celebrating. But, have you ever wondered how to make this busy season a bit more focused on Christ? One way our family is doing this is by hosting a Thanksgiving Worship Gathering (complete with lots of pie and good fellowship). Read all about it below!
What Exactly is a Thanksgiving Worship Gathering?
I’ll start by explaining how we go about it.
It’s an afternoon or evening in our home where we invite friends and family to join us for a time of worship and thanksgiving. We also ask them to bring their favorite pie which we enjoy together over fellowship.
This can be done on a small or large scale depending on the number of people you want to invite. The first year, it was just Steven and I. We had just moved to Maine and I had only recently come across this idea. Last year, it was 5 of us. We’re planning and hoping for even more this year. However many people you have, the focus is to come together for yummy food and to worship the Lord for all He is and has given.
Why We Host a Thanksgiving Worship Night
Hosting was a large part of my family growing up as a pastor’s daughter in a small town – and I loved it! My husband, however, did not have the same experience and it’s been a process for us to figure out how to navigate hosting in our home. Through many conversions and lots of grace, I do believe we’re (mostly) on the same page now and really enjoy hosting people in our home.
The second reason we want to host this event is because we both love Jesus, His word, and putting into practice what we see in Hebrew’s 10…
And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:24-25
Hosting a worship night around Thanksgiving is a great opportunity for us to be hospitable and to encourage the local body of Christ. And also…any reason for eating pie is a wonderful opportunity, am I right?
Steps for Hosting a Thanksgiving Worship Gathering
Plan – Make Decisions About Who, Where, When, and What
How many people do you want to invite? Decide if you want a small or large gathering and plan accordingly.
Where and when will it be? Will it be inside or outside? What order will you have everything?
Will you serve any other food? Hotdogs over a bonfire or a pot of chili on the stove? I love the idea of this, but in order to keep costs minimal, we plan to just have pie, whipped cream, and cozy drinks (coffee, tea, cider, hot chocolate).
Who will lead worship? If you have someone willing to bring a guitar and lead a of couple songs – great! If not, you could always 1) sing acappella or 2) grab a speaker and your phone playing songs via youtube. We did something very similar to this in our small church growing up and it was affectionately dubbed “Karaoke Choir.”
Decide if you want a set song list or if you plan to leave it open for suggestions. Also, decide how you plan to follow along with the lyrics (a simple solution to this is to have everyone look up lyrics on their phone, however, this can detract from a peaceful ambiance).
Invite friends and family
Invite people from your church or Bible study group, family, and friends. ***or that person you’ve been meaning to invite over for a while and haven’t had a chance.***Ask everyone to bring a pie. Alternatively, you can create a sign-up sheet for things to bring which could include pie, whipped cream, hot chocolate, apple cider, and anything else you’d like to have.
Some Practical Tips and Additions
Clear counter space or add a folding table for the pies, plates, and silverware.
Set up a drink station.
Ask about allergies. Allergies are a common thing and can leave people out if they can’t eat anything. Gluten being one of the more common.
Create a Thanksgiving Display. Here’s how to do it: Take a large section of brown kraft paper and tape it to a wall or door. Place a few pens or markers nearby. Throughout the party, guests can write something they’re thankful for or something they’ve seen God do in their lives this year on the kraft paper. This is a great way to remember what God has done in our lives and to share that great news with others.
Sample Order of Events
Let’s say you’re hosting this on a Sunday afternoon. The timeline could look like this…
3:00 Guests arrive and mingle
3:30 Gather for worship and prayer. Sing a couple songs together and close with a prayer of thanksgiving
4:00 Eat pie and mingle until guests are ready to leave
This timeline of course can be changed to suit your needs and the needs of your guests and may vary depending on if you plan to serve a meal or not.
I hope this has given you some fun and practical ideas as you plan your holiday celebrations this year!
As always, with love,
Ashlei
