22 Ways to Have Your Best Thanksgiving Ever!

November is here. Welcome Back! Last year, responses came all the way from the Middle East to the Mississippi, from Baltimore to Baton Rouge. You enthusiastically shared the joy of learning Psalm 103. For that reason, I decided to offer here the Encore Post from 2016. If you previously memorized Psalm 103, I suggest you make this your annual Thanksgiving Psalm and meditate afresh on the 22 verses you already committed to memory.

If you are new, welcome to 22 Ways to Make This Your Best Thanksgiving Ever. Read on...

Make a list, make a plan, make ahead…
Make a mess, clean the mess, make sure… 
Extend the table, cover the table, decorate the table…
Race the clock, race back to the store; race to be ready to relax.

Right? 

Hold on; stop! No more. It is now November, and I want this to be your best Thanksgiving ever. But you need to begin early; you need to begin today.

Disclaimer—not all of my ideas are good ideas, they are just ideas. Yet this one is stellar, I promise. Long after the guests are gone and the melting ice cream is placed back into the freezer, you will thank me. 

The Suggestion: 
Memorize Psalm 103. 
Don’t panic. I am not adding one more thing to your to do list. Stay with me here. Easier than taking your turkey out of the oven, these benefits will outlast the leftovers.

The Context:
I deem Psalm 103 My Thanksgiving Psalm. Each November, I return to savor the soul nourishing words contained in these 22 verses. I look forward to this annual revisit more than I look forward to the sweet potato soufflé.

The Plan: 
In Psalm 103 a verse corresponds with each calendar day of November. By committing one verse per day to memory, you will finish on November 22nd, one day before the guests arrive on November 23, 2017. 

The Hack: 
You might ask, “How do I go about this?” Great question.
Rick Warren proposes a scripture memory method that actually works. 

Begin with the first verse. Emphasize the first word in the verse and then repeat all the words that follow. Follow by emphasizing the second word and recite all the words that follow. And so on. 
Repeat the one sentence over and over emphasizing a different word with each repetition, until you have completed the one verse. Surprisingly, the verse will now be yours, hidden in your heart.

Verse one would go like this:
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. (continue with each word)

On November 2nd you proceed to committing verse 2 to memory. 

The Why: 
Hiding God’s Word in your heart infuses peace and perspective into your holiday celebration. You literally prepare a feast for your soul as you prepare a feast for your family. If you like this idea, embark on a new tradition. These 22 rich and delicious verses are waiting for you, served below.

Psalm 103
Of David.
1 Praise the LORD, my soul;
    all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins
    and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit
    and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 The LORD works righteousness
    and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
    his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
    slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,
    nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve
    or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
    so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed,
    he remembers that we are dust.
15 The life of mortals is like grass,
    they flourish like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
    and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting
    the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
    and his righteousness with their children’s children—
18 with those who keep his covenant
    and remember to obey his precepts.
19 The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
    and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Praise the LORD, you his angels,
    you mighty ones who do his bidding,
    who obey his word.
21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
    you his servants who do his will.
22 Praise the LORD, all his works
    everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the LORD, my soul.

Living With Eternal Intentionality™: How will this opportunity influence your holiday preparation?

The Woman Who Loved to Ride a Motorcycle

Lord, please give me back my verses. I prayed, please just give me back my verses.

I listened intently as the woman on the platform shared the shocking details of her head injury. The near-fatal accident occurred as she tried to create a play structure for her beloved grandchildren. The fall and its effect on her memory were serious, and in the hospital she pled with God to give her back the Scriptures she had so arduously learned over the course of her life.

Pregnant with our first child, I shifted uncomfortably in my stadium seat this humid June evening of 1975. Yet the elegant woman—standing on the podium and addressing the audience of thousands at the microphone—held my attention as if she and I were all alone in a conversation. Her love for God, her husband, and her family made me long for a personal conversation.

Though we would never meet face to face, she and I eventually became acquainted through her writings. The woman was Ruth Graham, wife of world renowned evangelist Billy Graham.

Recently, I read Ruth, A Portrait: The Story of Ruth Bell Graham by Patricia Cornwell, published in 1997 by Doubleday. The author's personal friendship with Ruth brings delightful familiarity to a woman the world only knows from a distance.

Interesting insights I gleaned from reading this biography:

•    Ruth was born on a missionary compound in China. Her father, a medical missionary, brought her into the world in the upstairs bedroom of their home.

•    As a child growing up, she loved pets.

•    At thirteen, this child suffered severe homesickness at boarding school fifteen hundred miles from her parents.

•    Ruth Bell believed, growing up, she would never marry and would give her life as missionary to Tibet.

•    At Wheaton College, the first time they met, Billy Graham said that he fell in love.

•    Once engaged, Ruth actually entertained second thoughts, and wrote her fiancé a crushing letter. Thankfully, they overcame the obstacles, and The Grahams were married after their senior year—he the Baptist, and she the Presbyterian.

•    Gracious and humorous, in their global ministry Ruth moved seamlessly between royalty, celebrities, and commoners. Sharing her faith was never an assignment, but a calling. Her genuine love for people flowed out of her Scripture-saturated love for God.

•    As a mother of five children—with Dad often away—the day began with reading Bible verses around the kitchen table.

•    Early morning hours, the only time to herself, were Ruth's for studying her Bible and meditating.

•    She was a devoted grandmother, and her grandchildren called her Tai Tai, Chinese for 'The Great One.'

•    Her writings, especially her poetry, pour from a soul deeply in love with God.

•    I never knew, before reading this volume, that Ruth Graham accompanied Billy on his visit to speak in communist Poland in 1978 . (I still recall the overflowing crowd in the downtown Warsaw venue, the cold corner where I stood hovered in the back of this ancient church, and the glaring eyes of the security police who monitored every move of every person in attendance. I remember wondering if there would be negative consequences from our choosing to attend. Thankfully, there were not.) 

•    George and Barbara Bush, Johnny and June Cash, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans were close friends of the Grahams.

•    Ruth Graham learned to ride a motorcycle.                           

I commend this book to you. 

 Living with Eternal Intentionality: What is a favorite biography you have read lately. Why did you enjoy it?

Anxiety in the Dentist's Chair

I felt uncomfortable, constrained, and overly concerned. Was this anxiety?

“One more. Ok—one last sticky, gummy, gluey, clinging, syrupy, jelly piece. Then, get back on the bus. It is time to go.” The conversation inside my head kept me moving. While traveling in another country, our large group stopped in a local candy shop to sample a smorgasbord of Turkish Delight before returning to our hotel and to our conference—a delightful ending to a delightful day. Or so it seemed.

Suddenly (without warning) the last sugary blob in my mouth felt anything but delightful. “Did I just bite down on the hull of a pistachio nut?” If only.

Within moments it became apparent that the unwanted souvenir I was chewing on was definitely not the hull of a pistachio nut; instead, what I held in my mouth was the gold crown off my tooth! Ouch. My sweet outing just turned sour.

In a matter of days, when the conference ended, I returned home, and found myself facing “a delightful (?) procedure.” For the two-hour technique, the chair was tilted back with my feet higher than my head, bright lights beamed down, and strange medicinal odors hung in the air.

Actually, this arrangement felt familiar. But my mental thought process did not feel familiar. While my body was subjected to science, what would I do with my brain?

Generally, I am fine with dental work. Hey—my dentist deserves a five star review, and his assistant could put a rhino at ease. They even provide a blanket, a pillow, and a moist face towel! 

Nonetheless, an unfamiliar mental challenge descended and caught me totally by surprise. (Eventually I would listen to an audiobook, but at the moment my mind had a mind of its own.)

I felt uncomfortable, constrained, and overly concerned. Was this anxiety?

When anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul (Psalm 94:19 NASB). Whew. Thank you, Holy Spirit; I needed that. (Observation: anxious thoughts actually multiply. They do not stay singular. They are not alone or isolated or random. The Bible is right. They actually multiply.)

Then, onto my perplexing mental medical scene, a glorious idea broke forth.

The English alphabet has 26 letters. What if I take my mind through 26 different attributes of God while I wait alone the fifteen minutes for the numbing medication to take effect?

And so I silently began:

A Almighty: God, You are almighty.

B Beautiful: God, You are beautiful.

C Concerned: God, You are concerned about my tooth.

D Dear: God, You are so dear to love me the way You do.

E Ever-present: God, You are ever-present. I am not alone here in this dental chair.

F Faithful: God, You are faithful to always meet my need for help.

G Good: God, You are so good to have gotten me safely home with this problem.

And on and on...26 times for all 26 letters in the alphabet.

With each letter, with each attribute, with each characteristic, my beloved heavenly Father came more sharply into focus. Simultaneously, my mind calmed down and my body relaxed. Soon I felt ensconced in a cocoon of supernatural love. Cease striving (let go, relax) and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10 NASB).

Alphabet of Attributes

Since that day in the dentist’s chair, I have found this mental exercise helpful far beyond the original setting. The delightful Alphabet of Attributes idea is transferable into other situations like waking up in the middle of the night.

Thankfully, my tooth is repaired. But make no mistake about it, I will say, “No thank you,” the next time I am offered Turkish Delight. I will leave my portion for Edmund. 

Living with Eternal Intentionality: When did you recently feel mentally challenged? How did you navigate yourself out of the quagmire?