“Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.” (Romans 1:21 NLT)

A man was nailing down a loose shingle on his roof when he lost his footing and began to slip. Working three stories above ground, he was terrified at the thought of falling to his death. He shouted, “God, help me! I’m falling! Do something!” Just as he came to the edge of the roof, his belt loop caught on a nail and stopped him long enough for him to grab hold of the roof and pull himself to safety.

He shouted, “Never mind, God! The nail stopped my fall.”

How many times have we been guilty of the same kind of obliviousness in our own prayers? We cry out to God in a moment of distress. He answers our cry by working through the situation to relieve our distress. Then we say, “Never mind, God! Everything worked out by itself.”

A better solution is to examine our circumstances to see where God intervened so that we can give Him the praise and gratitude He deserves. The apostle Paul wrote, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” (Romans 8:28 NLT). We can’t always see the work He does, but we can be certain that when things work together for the good, it’s because God orchestrated it. So, we need to put as much zeal into thanking God for what He’s done as we put into pleading with God when we’re in need.

I heard about a hospital chaplain who kept a record of some two thousand patients whom he had visited, all of whom were in grave condition and showed signs of repentance. Among those restored to health, he felt that only two showed a marked change in their spiritual lives after their recovery. In other words, when these people thought they were dying, they repented. But when they recovered, they forgot about God.

Paul warned what happens when people fall into this trap: “Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused” (Romans 1:21 NLT).

Is it possible to have a genuine relationship when one person constantly asks something of the other but never offers a word of thanks in return? The more thankful we are toward God, the deeper we can grow in our relationship with Him. So, in this holiday season, let’s cling to the words of Psalm 100:4–5: “Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation” (NLT).

Reflection question: How can you be proactive in giving thanks to God?

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“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV)

We have so much to be thankful for, it can be difficult to know where to start offering our praise and gratitude to our heavenly Father. Certainly, we all have stories of how God came through for us during a major crisis in our life. But there are countless “minor” blessings that we enjoy every day that shouldn’t go unnoticed—or unmentioned in our prayers of thankfulness.

In her remarkable book The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom relates an amazing story about the importance of being thankful. Corrie and her sister Betsie were held in a concentration camp known as Ravensbrück, where they lived in barracks that were plagued by fleas. Fleas were everywhere—in their beds, in their clothes, in their hair, and on their bodies. One day Betsie told Corrie that they needed to give thanks for the fleas.

Corrie thought Betsie had gone too far. She couldn’t imagine thanking God for fleas. But Betsie insisted, reminding her sister that the Bible says, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV). Still, Corrie didn’t want to thank God for the fleas. But as it turned out, Corrie and Betsie were trying to reach the other women in their barracks with the message of the gospel. They had been holding Bible studies, which was forbidden in the camp. They found out later that because of the fleas, the guards would not go into their barracks. That allowed the sisters to hold their Bible studies with no fear of being discovered. As a result, they had the freedom to minister to their fellow prisoners.

One obvious takeaway from this story is that God can use even fleas to accomplish His work. A less obvious takeaway is that we should do a major expansion of our concept of things to give thanks for.

If the Bible said, “In some things give thanks,” I would say, “No problem there!” But it says, “In every thing give thanks.” And that’s not an easy thing to do. We’re conditioned to say thank you for things that obviously benefit us. We treat gratitude as part of a transaction. You do something nice for me, and I say something nice to you.

But that’s not what God is looking for. That’s not what the apostle Paul is saying in 1 Thessalonians 5:18. God wants us to maintain a spirit of thankfulness that isn’t dimmed when things don’t go our way. He wants us to recognize the endless supply of things we can and should be grateful for.

The verse doesn’t say we should give thanks for every thing; it says we should give thanks in every thing. We don’t have to be glad or thankful that tragedies occur. But we can be thankful that, in spite of the tragedy, God is still on the throne, and He is still in control of all circumstances that surround our lives.

Reflection question: What common, daily blessings are you thankful for?

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The audio production of the podcast "Greg Laurie: Daily Devotions" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."

All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie.

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“The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.” (John 15:19 NLT)

God is faithful. As with some of His other attributes, His faithfulness isn’t always apparent to us. Sometimes His ways seem harsh, but if we trust in Him, eventually, we will recognize the unshakable faithfulness behind them.

“‘My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,’ says the Lord. ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts’” (Isaiah 55:8–9 NLT).

We can’t always trust our feelings when it comes to God’s faithfulness. What seems like callousness may in fact be evidence of God’s commitment to us and to our spiritual well-being. God doesn’t promise to make our lives free from pain and struggle. He promises to make our lives spiritually fruitful if we remain faithful to Him.

I heard a story about some fish suppliers who were having problems shipping cod from the East Coast. By the time it reached the West, it was spoiled. They froze it, but by the time it arrived, it was mushy. So, they decided to send it alive, but it arrived dead. They tried sending it alive again, but with one difference: They included a catfish in each tank. You see, catfish are the natural enemies of cod. By the time the cod arrived, they were alive and well because they had spent their trip fleeing the catfish.

Maybe God has put a catfish in your tank to keep you alive and well spiritually. He’s faithful that way. Maybe there’s a person at work who always has eight hard questions for you every morning regarding spiritual things. Maybe it’s that neighbor who is giving you a hard time for your faith in Jesus. Maybe it’s a spouse or a family member who doesn’t believe. You are wondering why this is happening. It’s like that catfish. That person is keeping you alert.

Shortly before His crucifixion, Jesus told the disciples, “The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you” (John 15:19 NLT).

God will allow persecution in the life of a believer. If you’re experiencing persecution, here are two things to remember: First, persecution confirms that you are a child of God. Second, persecution causes you to cling more tightly to Jesus. That’s God’s faithfulness at work. Embrace it. Give thanks for it.

And when you’re suffering persecution for your faith, remember, this world isn’t your real home anyway. If you persevere with a steady, peaceful spirit, trusting in Jesus to help you, your welcome into Heaven will be more glorious than you can imagine. You can depend on it because God is faithful.

Reflection question: When have you experienced God’s faithfulness in your life?

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The audio production of the podcast "Greg Laurie: Daily Devotions" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."

All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie.

Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast

Become a Harvest Partner

Support the show: https://harvest.org/support

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.