How to Say Grace as a Family to Show Gratitude and Thanks

Saying a blessing of gratitude before a meal remains the most common means of spiritual expression.

A prayer of gratitude before eating a meal remains one of the most common methods of spiritual expression. People are obviously grateful for a good feast, or perhaps simply more comfortable offering their specific thanks as a tradition. Those who live in faith and people with grateful hearts likely think, feel and express their gratitude with ease throughout the entire day. Here is an alternate way to get your family involved in a gratitude prayer. Try this at Thanksgiving, or your next family dinner; children can also be encouraged to use this simple prayer at bedtime.

Things You'll Need

• Gratitude

Instructions

1. 

   Delegate one family member to begin by speaking a simple message of general gratitude. Once you have established this as a meal time routine, the initial blessing can be rotated nightly, among all family members.
   He (or she) then states something he is grateful for, beginning with the first letter of the alphabet. "I am grateful today for: Aunt Debbie joining us for dinner."

2. The person to his right follows along, using the next letter of the alphabet. "I am grateful today for: my Boss, who offered me a raise!" Exceptions can be made for certain letters, such as x, y, z or q, allowing the letter to be used somewhere within the word rather than starting off with that letter. "I am grateful today for: (X) extra help I received from Ms. Davis with my math work."

3. Continue around the table until all letters have been used. This works for a family of two or twenty two, and due to it's informality, allows for those who behold differing spiritual views or anyone not exceptionally religious or to participate with comfort and ease. Everyone has something to be grateful for. Encourage your family to remember things throughout the day that brought them feelings of gratitude and appreciation that they are thankful for. It could be a person, or yes- even a possession. Perhaps someone is grateful for a friendship, a relative's health. There've been days I've been truly grateful for Coffee and Cream. Keep in mind that gratitude is personal and others' should be discouraged from judging another's offering.

4. Try saying this blessing as a beautiful bedtime prayer for all ages (alone, or as an addition). It's also a peaceful way to end your hectic day, placing all the wonderful events and happenings upfront in your mind and your heart as you drift off to sleep. It just may happen that sleep comes somewhere between the letters J and M. The following night, pick up from where the prayer was left off the night before.