Thanksgiving prayers

Today let those wiser than I lend us their expressions of thanksgiving.

No matter what your faith, something here might inspire the most important part of the celebration: gratitude to God who has provided us with everything. Hoping that the younger members of your household could do the honors, I include some that children can read easily.

Some of the little verses can be defined only as “traditional,” and may be modified to fit our families’ traditions. The first one is the gift of friends, used whenever we break bread together.

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Heavenly Father,
We thank you for
the food before us,
the friends beside us,
the love between us and
your presence among us.
Amen. (1)

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Lord, so often times, as any other day
When we sit down to our meal and pray,
We hurry along and make fast the blessing:
“Thanks, amen. Now please pass the dressing.”
We're slaves to the olfactory overload.
We must rush our prayer before the food gets cold.
But Lord, I'd like to take a few minutes more
To really give thanks to what I'm thankful for.
For my family, my health, a nice soft bed,
My friends, my freedom, a roof over my head,
I'm thankful right now to be surrounded by those
Whose lives touch me more than they'll ever possibly know.
Thankful Lord, that You've blessed me beyond measure;
Thankful that in my heart lives life's greatest treasure,
That You, dear Jesus, reside in that place,
And I'm ever so grateful for Your unending grace.
So please, heavenly Father, bless this food You've provided,
And bless each and every person invited. Amen! (2)

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For food in a world where many walk in hunger;
For faith in a world where many walk in fear;
For friends in a world where many walk alone;
We give you thanks, O Lord. Amen. (3)

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Baruch atah Adonai, eloheynu melech ha’olam hamotzi lechem min ha’oretz.
Blessed are you, Lord our God, ruler of the universe, who gives us bread from the earth. (4)

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Oh God, we thank you for this food,
For rest and home and all things good,
For wind and rain and sun above –
But most of all for those we love.

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God our creator, you have ordered seedtime and harvest, sunshine and rain. Grant that all the people of our nation may give thanks to you for food, drink, and all that sustains life; may honor the land and water from which these good things come; and may respect those who labor to produce them. Through your son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (5)

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Bless the food upon the dishes
as you blessed the loaves and fishes.
As the sugar hides in the tea,
let me hide myself in Thee. Amen.

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For cities and towns, factories and farms, flowers and trees, sea and sky,
Lord, we praise You for the world and its beauty.
For family and friends, neighbors and cousins,
Lord, we thank You for friendship and love.
For kind hearts, smiling faces, and helping hands,
Lord, we praise You for those who care for others.
For commandments that teach us how to live,
Lord, we thank You for those who help us to understand your laws.
And for making us one family on earth, the children of One God,
Lord we praise You, Who made all people different, yet alike. (6)

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For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends. (7)

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In the name of God the Most Gracious the Most Merciful.
All praises and thanks are due to God alone, the Sustainer of all the worlds.
The Most Gracious, the Dispenser of Grace, Lord of the Day of Judgment.
You alone do we worship; and unto You alone do we turn for aid.
Guide us the straight way. The way of those upon whom You have bestowed Your blessings, not of those who have been condemned by You, nor of those who go astray. Amen. (8 )

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Thank you for the world so sweet,
Thank you for the food we eat,
Thank you for the birds that sing,
Thank you, God, for everything.

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For the blessings you've bestowed upon this home and on this family,
For all the days we've had together and all the days to come,
For the joys and sorrows that bind us ever closer,
For the trials we've overcome,
And for teaching us that we can do no great things,
Only small things with great love,
Lord, we thank you. (9)

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God is great, God is good.
Let us thank him for our food.
By his hands we all are fed.
Give us, Lord, our daily bread. Amen.

(1) Hugh/Marquita Foster
(2) Scott Wesemann
(3) Huron Hunger Fund, Anglican Church of Canada
(4) Jewish prayer – Susan Levine
(5) Lutheran Book of Worship 1978
(6) From a Jewish liturgy
(7) Ralph Waldo Emerson
(8) Islamic Prayer – Soumaya Khalifa
(9) Gerald Donnelly