Alex and Krista offer inspiration for prayer and conversation around your Thanksgiving or Christmas gathering. Sprinkled with prayers, and even a historic Thanksgiving Day Proclamation, is a sister-to-sister conversation meant to give you the part practical, part inspirational you need to set your table and event.

Whether you’re trying to figure out how to get conversation flowing or you don’t know how to do a prayer given the guests in attendance, we offer some ideas that might help get the creative ideas churning. We want you to be able to honor your guests and honor God by setting a spot where people feel comfortable expressing gratitude.

This is one you might refer to again and again as you consider what it means to gather those you love. We hope you listen as you cook, clean, or drive as part of your Thanksgiving holiday prep. But most of all we hope you know we believe you are world changers for good right where you are, wherever that might be.

Listen to this episode:

You can listen on iTunes or watch it here:

A few things mentioned:

The Lord’s Prayer

(Matthew 6:9-13) from The New Living Translation:

Our Father in heaven,
    may your name be kept holy.
May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done on earth,
    as it is in heaven.
Give us today the food we need,
and forgive us our sins,
    as we have forgiven those who sin against us.
And don’t let us yield to temptation,
    but rescue us from the evil one.

The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters by Priya Parker

Grace After Meals

From To Bless The Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings by John O’Donohue

“We end this meal with grace

For the joy and nourishment of food,

The slowed time away from the world

To come into presence with each other

And sense the subtle lives behind our faces,

The different colors of our voices,

The edges of hungers we keep private,

The circle of love that unites us.

We pray the wise spirit who keeps us

To change the structures that make others hunger

And that after such grace we might now go forth

And impart dignity wherever we partake.”

Questions for the table:

1. What’s your favorite Thanksgiving or holiday memory?

2. If you could have dinner with anyone living or dead, who would it be?

3. What’s the best gift you have ever received? 

4. What’s the best advice you’ve ever received? 

5. What’s the best book you’ve read and what made it so special?

6. Share about a time when you had a need. How was it met?

7. If you could meet your great great grandchildren what wisdom would you pass on

to them? What would you want them to know? 

8. If you could spend one day doing a job that you are not currently doing, what would you do? 

9. What’s one thing that you would love to do in your lifetime that no one knows?

10. What’s your biggest fear?

11. If you were going to open a restaurant, what would the concept be?

12. What’s the strangest thing you believed as a child?

13. If a movie was made of your life, who would play you?

14. What was your biggest fashion faux pas ever?

15. What’s the most adventurous thing you’ve ever done?

16. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

You can also download Krista’s 90 Conversation Starter Cards for your table

Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1789

“Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor– and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.”

george washington

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his[a];
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Psalm 100

Thank you to our sponsor

Grit and Virtue

Beautiful journals for you to have as a keepsake and of course to give as a gift.

15% off your first order with promo code Sisterhood15. If you want to purchase a bulk order for your team, retreat, or women’s gathering, you can do so as well. Charlena will also include a bonus Journaling Guide for your attendees. Visit: www.gritandvirtue.com to learn more and to order.