We made everything from scratch.
The Brits brought the mashed potatoes, and the Norwegians an apple tart. An American teammate cooked her famous yam recipe, and a Swiss family supplied the roast chicken.
Meanwhile, I attempted my first homemade pie crust filled with a locally sourced pumpkin I had cooked over a little gas burner and mashed up with a fork.
Thanksgivings in North Africa are unlike any I ever celebrated in America.
One year, I happened to find a six-ounce can of Ocean Spray cranberry sauce in a store in a wealthy neighborhood on the other side of town. It cost about $6—a dollar per ounce.
That one purchase was totally worth it. Because the taste of the Thanksgiving feast on my lips reminds me of the goodness of the Giver.
We have much to give thanks for.
God constantly shows His deep love and personal care for each one of us—through our families, homes, jobs, schools, and churches.
But above these are the gifts of His faithful promises. God promises to forgive us (1 John 1:9), to bring us to Himself in heaven (John 14:2-3), and to give us a glorious inheritance (1 Peter 1:3-5).
As I rest in these promises, I see my Muslim friends living in fear. Their lives are governed by one great uncertainty.
“I am so afraid of death,” I’ve heard Muslim women say. “I’m afraid of going to hell.”
It’s no wonder. Without the assurance of God’s love and eternal peace, a spirit of fear abounds.
“If you do all your prayers, and bow down 100 times a day, and if you take longer doing your prayers,” a Muslim teacher once advised some anxious women, “it will light up the darkness of your grave. This will be your hope and comfort when you die.”
As followers of Jesus, we know that salvation doesn’t hinge on merit-based works. It rests on Christ, our eternal hope and comfort.
This is what our Muslim friends most need to hear—the hope of Jesus that takes away every fear and puts His praise on our lips!
Let’s invite them to the feast and offer them the chance to give thanks to the God of our salvation!
Main photo by Aaron Burden
Original article: https://frontiersusa.org/african-pumpkins-and-cranberry-sauce/