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Thanksgiving prayers
Short prayers you can read aloud before the Thanksgiving meal, pray with your family, or keep for yourself. Pick one, or let a different person read each.
The prayers on this page were written for Lamp & Flame; you're welcome to pray, copy and share them. Bible verses are quoted from the King James Version.
A short Thanksgiving prayer for dinner
Lord, thank You for this food, for the hands that prepared it and for the people around this table. Thank You for Your goodness to us this year. Bless this meal and bless our time together. In Jesus' name, Amen.
A Thanksgiving blessing for the family
Father, we stop today to say thank You. Thank You for our family and our friends, for the home You've given us and for every way You've carried us this year. Help us to love one another well, to be generous with what we have and to remember the people who are hungry or alone today. We give You thanks, for You are good, and Your mercy endures forever. In Jesus' name, Amen.
A one-line Thanksgiving grace
Thank You, Lord, for this food, this family and Your faithful love. Amen.
A prayer of gratitude in a hard year
Lord, this year hasn't been easy, and some of us are carrying grief and worry to this table. Even so, we thank You. Thank You that You have not left us. Thank You for the friends who showed up, the needs You met and the mercies that were new each morning. Hold close those we miss today, and give us grateful hearts for what we still have. In Jesus' name, Amen.
A prayer for those who are alone or working today
Father, we pray for everyone who is alone this Thanksgiving, for those working in hospitals, kitchens and on the roads, for soldiers far from home and for families with an empty chair. Comfort them, provide for them and let them know they are not forgotten. Show us who we can invite or encourage. In Jesus' name, Amen.
A simple Thanksgiving prayer for children
Dear God, thank You for my family, my food, my friends and my home. Thank You for loving me. Help me to say thank you more and to share with others. Amen.
Scripture to pray with
“Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.”
“O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.”
“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
“And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.”
“O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.”
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”