“I’m Thankful for My Food!”
“Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7
Taonga was so excited that she sprinted from the school yard with the package safely secured in her zipped backpack. Nothing was going to distract her from her mission to get to mom with the special message and surprise. Her heart seemed to be ready to beat out of her chest. She wasn’t sure if that was from running or from excitement. As she turned down her lane, she saw her mother in front of her house selling her family’s vegetables — tomatoes, onions, cabbage, rape seed, chiwawa, and kalembra.
“Mum, mum! Guess what I have?”
Judging from her huge grin from ear to ear, her mother assumed what the answer was but instead shrugged.
“Mum! You know what I have. Stop teasing me. Aren’t you excited, too?”
“Yes, Taonga. Getting a meal packet of rice and lentils from school is very exciting… a feast for our family. Praise God! I am very proud of you. You know that rice is special here! Girl, are we gonna eat well tonight!”
“Yes, I am so thankful to God for providing for us tonight. I can already taste the rice… I’m hungry!”
” And I have some news to share with you as well, Taonga. Today, I sold 100 tomatoes and 10 onions to the mzungu missionary. She is planning to make to tomato sauce for her family.”
“Mum, that’s amazing! This is the best day you have had in weeks! Praise God!” Taonga replied as she hugged her mother.
As Taonga took the packet from her school bag and handed it to her mother, she swelled with pride. Receiving this was a reward for school attendance, but it also meant that she was providing for her family. Since father had hurt his back making cement blocks, mother’s small income at her vegetable stand was the family’s only earnings. There were two times already this week that their family didn’t have anything to eat — not even a cup of mealie meal for their supper. Her stomach had been grumbling all during her lessons at school which left her distracted and unable to understand her teacher. Taonga was especially thankful for the school lunch and often reserved some in a plastic to take it home for her siblings. There was no way she would eat all of that at school, knowing her brother and sister didn’t have anything at home.
“So, Taonga, what do you think we should eat tonight? I bought this large bag of breakfast mealie for Nshima, but we could also have your meal packet.”
“Mum, a choice? We actually have a choice? I thought choice was for kings and presidents!”
“Yes, my child. Tonight, we ARE rich.”
“Can we have both?” They laughed, knowing THAT wasn’t an actual choice, but either one would be a welcome feast for the family. Tonight, they would go to bed with full tummies and the comfort that tomorrow’s dinner was already safely in their house.
THANKSGIVING DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
What was Taonga thankful for in this story? Why was that such a blessing to her and her family?
What was the most impactful part of the story to you personally?
While we live in a country where we have more than enough food to eat, there are families all around the world who don’t have any food to eat and don’t know when they will eat again. How do you feel about this? How does this story make you think differently about being thankful for food?
Sometimes we are tempted to say, “I’m starving!” What do we really mean by this? Is it an accurate representation of what’s going on? What could we say differently?
THANKSGIVING ACTION ITEMS:
What could your family do to help people around you or around the world that are hungry and malnourished?
- Make homeless bags that you can store in your car. Hand them out when you see hungry people asking for food on streetcorners.
- Serve in a local food pantry or food bank.
- Donate food to a food pantry.
- Serve at a meal packing event with Meals from the Heartland or with Kids Around the World (or another organization in your area!)
- This weekend take a meal to a family who is hurting due to a loss of a job, a death in the family, a sick family member, or something else.
- Have a family fast day to remind yourself of the blessing of having food in your home.
- Invite someone in need to join you for Thanksgiving.
- Download these papers for your children to write and draw what they are thankful for today. (Make one each day of this devotion series.)
THANKSGIVING SCRIPTURE MEMORIZATION:
“Psalm 100 is a classic portion of Scripture for our families to memorize during this Thanksgiving season. Click HERE to get a Free Printable of Psalm 100. If you need ideas on how to memorize Scripture with your family, click here to see some of my favorites.”
(If you have already memorized Psalm 100, you can try Psalm 95 instead.)
THANKSGIVING PRAYER TIME:
Thank God for the abundance of food that you get each day, for three meals and snacks, and for healthy food that makes you strong and healthy. Thank God that your family has food stored in your home for the next several days. You don’t have to wonder if you will eat breakfast or lunch or dinner tomorrow. Pray for children all around the world who are hungry today.
Would you like to know more about our work with orphaned and vulnerable children in Lusaka, Zambia? Click here to go to Family Legacy Missions International’s website.
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