Browsing Tag

thankfulness

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Philippians 4:6

Posted on September 8, 2022

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. – Phil 4:6 (NIV)

This verse tells us to not be anxious about anything. That often seems like a pretty difficult. You might see lots bad things going on in the world. Or feel that you’re under too much stress at work or school. Even in the middle of all of these things, God tells us to not be anxious.

How is that possible? How can you go through life without being anxious? The rest of this verse tells us how to do it. We are to do two things:

Pray.
Be thankful.

When we choose to be thankful, it changes our perspective on the situation. Instead of being stressed out about how demanding your job is, you can be thankful that you have a job. Instead of stressing about whether you’re going to meet the right person to marry, you can be thankful that you’re single and get to spend more of your free time getting to know God. In many cases, being thankful can turn your anxiety around. It’s hard to be anxious when you’re thankful.

Today choose to put aside your anxiety and choose to practice being thankful. You’ll find that as you become thankful, it’s hard to be anxious.

Today’s Truth: It’s hard to be anxious when you’re thankful. Develop a habit of giving thanks.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – 1 Chronicles 16:8

Posted on November 30, 2021

Give thanks to the LORD and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done. – 1 Chronicles 16:8

When something amazing happens to you, what do you do? If you’re like most people, you tell someone. You share it. Simply put, you let people know when something major happens in your life. God built us that way. He built us to share and have relationships with other people.

However, many times when it comes to something amazing that God did in our lives, we often keep silent. We might fear that other people will think we’re weird, or just feel unsure of how to share with others.

Challenge yourself today to give thanks to God for what He’s done, but also let others know about it. Today’s Bible verse tells us to let the whole world know what He’s done. Share what God has done in your life with someone today.

Let God speak through you to encourage others that they can get to know God too. If God has done something amazing in your life, don’t keep it a secret. Step out and share what He’s done for you. You never know who might get encouraged because you weren’t afraid to tell someone!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Psalm 7:17

Posted on November 25, 2020

I will thank the LORD because he is just; I will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High. – Psalm 7:17 (NLT)

What’s going good in your life right now? Are your classes easy? Did you meet a new friend? Perhaps your mom made your favorite dessert for dinner last night.

With all the things going on in the world, it can be easy to focus on what’s wrong, but take a moment and think about what’s going right in your life. And even if you can’t seem to think of anything, think of this.

The Lord is just. Today’s Bible verse tells us that God is just. That means that even in those times where it feels like nothing is going the way you’d like, that God is just. He provides for those who love Him. God is always looking out for you.

So regardless of the things you’re facing, you have something to thank God for this year. God is always just. He always comes through. So remind yourself of the good things God has done. Focus on His favor and goodness and you’ll see you have something to be thankful for.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Hebrews 13:15

Posted on November 12, 2020

By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. – Hebrews 13:15

The crazy thing about thanking someone is that you’ve got to express your thankfulness. If you just think it, the person you’re wanting to thank will never know it. You’ve got to tell them, text them, write them, message them, or use any other medium you know. The point is, you’ve got to express your thankfulness in some way. If you don’t, the person will never know that you appreciate them and what they did.

Today’s Bible verse talks about thanking God. It tells us to thank Him continually. Many times we think that if we thank God once a week at church, we’re all set. However, this verse tells us to thank Him continually. So when you’re eating breakfast, thank Him for your food. When you go to school, thank Him for the opportunity to learn. In all things throughout the day, take moments to give God thanks.

[Tweet “At different points during your day, make time to give God thanks. – @studentdevos”]

When we take time out to thank God, we’re helping Him, but we’re also helping ourselves. When you take time to think about all the things you have to thank God for, you can’t be sad. You can’t feel down and depressed when you’re spending time thanking God for all He has done for you. So if you need good news today or some encouragement, instead of waiting for it to come to you, choose to be thankful. Make a list of everything God has done for you, and you’ll find that it’s a lot harder to be sad!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Psalm 69:30

Posted on September 5, 2019

I will praise God’s name in song
and glorify him with thanksgiving. – Psalm 69:30 (NIV)

When you’re stressed out, it’s hard to be thankful. Maybe the pressures from your parents or friends seem overwhelming and it makes you want to give up. When you start to feel like that, one of the best things you can do is to start being thankful.

Thankfulness has a strange way of helping you. When you begin to be thankful, it makes you feel better. You begin to realize that even though you’re going through some tough things, there are still things to thank God for.

Today’s Challenge: Practice Thankfulness

What can you do today to be thankful? Could you take a moment and journal a list of things that are good in your life?

Taking time to practice thankfulness helps you. It makes you aware that God is working in your life. It keeps your attitude good too. You begin to realize that you have so many things to thank God for.

So today, if you’ve been guilty of being unhappy or stressed out about something, take some time to practice thankfulness. Choose to see the good things in your life and take time to thank God for them. Know that God loves you and is working mightily on your behalf.

Read the Other Challenges

Day 1 – Challenge: Practice Quiet
Day 2 – Challenge: Practice Generosity
Day 3 – Challenge: Practice Community
Day 4 – Challenge: Practice Thankfulness
Day 5 – Challenge: Practice Identity

If you’d like a PDF copy of this 5-day challenge as well as some bonus content for further study, feel free to download Every Teenager’s Guide to Growing in God.

Amazon Reviews – What They Teach Us About Thankfulness

Posted on November 16, 2015

Have you ever spent time reading some of the reviews on Amazon? They can be really helpful when you’re trying to make a decision on which product to buy. You can take your time and read the experiences of others, which helps you make an informed decisions when buying products.

Leaving reviews on Amazon can teach us some things about thankfulness.

Give thanks to the LORD and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done. – 1 Chronicles 16:8

Give thanks

The first part of this verse talks about giving thanks to the Lord. But what does giving thanks to God really look like?

Giving thanks is something that requires expression. If you don’t express your thanks in some way, the person you’re thanking will never know that you’re thankful. So, if you’re thankful to God, you’ve got to express it. You could journal your thankfulness, you could write a song, or even just express those thoughts in prayer. It doesn’t matter how your thankfulness is expressed, just that you do let God know that you’re thankful for all He has done in your life.

Benefits of thankfulness

Being thankful has some benefits. The first one is that thankfulness helps others. If we look at the example of Amazon reviews, when you leave a review, it helps others. It helps people know if they want to buy the product, or if the product is good. When you express your thankfulness for a product or for something that God has done, it helps others.

Being thankful also helps you. Whether you know it or not, being thankful is good for you. If you’re upset or feeling depressed, one of the best ways to help yourself out is to be thankful. You can start thanking God for all the good things in your life. As you do, you suddenly realize that you’re not as sad or upset anymore. Being thankful helps you!

Let others know what God has done

If you were to find a great deal at a new store, or listen to a great new song, you’d tell people about it. When you experience something good, you tell others about it. If you bought a great product online, you’d give it 5 stars, or write a great review. We are wired to share good news with others.

[Tweet “Don’t forget to share what God has done for you! – @studentdevos”]

The problem is, many times we forget to share the good things God is doing in our lives with others. We know that God is good and has done great things in our lives, but often, we don’t share Him with others. We don’t take the time to tell people how God has changed our lives.

Challenge yourself to not become unthankful. Decide to express your thanks to God and to others this week. Choose to give thanks and see how great it is!

If you’re a youth leader and you’re looking for resources to share with your youth group, check out our lesson outline and powerpoint available for free based on this devotion!