Thanksgiving for the nations

by Mike Licht, Notionscapital.com

I returned from Wooster Grace where we served 65 people at the Internationals Thanksgiving Dinner. Most internationals in the Wooster area are unfamiliar with preparing Thanksgiving type food. So Celeste Hodgdon mobilized people from our church to provide an American Thanksgiving meal with all the fixin's.

Many were invited. Sixty-five joined us in the South Fellowship Hall. We ate a meal together. We had various nations represented: Brazil, Germany, Japan, China, Ecuador, Chile, Mexico, United States, and Navajo.

We even had international prepare and share typical dishes from their country of birth. I tasted marinated chicken in a soy sauce/ginger/pepper soak. I wolfed down fried rice. I savored German pastries and cookies. Everything was great!

I thank God that we could provide a meal for internationals to taste the foods of the season with new friends for this season in their lives. Most are involved with graduate school or work in town. Two families benefited from a immigration lottery so that they could be in the United States. I tried learning how to say thanks for coming in the various languages. I mimicked, got corrected, receive more laughs than compliments but I know that everyone was personally thanked. What a great team effort!

I saw the Hodgdon's with a digital camera. So if I can get their pictures, I will post some later. Overall, God is helping our church to develop all people from all the nations of the world into fully devoted followers of Jesus.