Greg Laurie Harvest Daily Devotional

Act now to share the love of Christ in the Middle East
<< Greg Laurie Daily Devotions

Always Thankful - Greg Laurie Daily Devotion - November 21

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Always Thankful

In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:18 NKJV)

A hospital chaplain kept a record of 2,000 patients he had known who were apparently in a dying condition and had shown signs of repentance. He reported that of those who were restored to health, only two showed what he felt were marked changes in their spiritual lives after their recovery.

In other words, when people thought they were dying, they wanted God’s help. But once they had recovered, they forgot about Him. They continued to live the way they wanted to live.

Far too often we ask God for help, but when He gives it, we don’t offer Him any thanks in return. What would you think of a person who was always asking for resources and favors and never took the time to thank you? (Actually, I think we call them children.)

It is one thing to give thanks when things are going well, but we can give thanks even when times are hard. Think of David and the beautiful psalms that he penned. One of my favorites is Psalm 63: “Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name” (verses 3–4 NKJV).

We may think David wrote those words while he was kicking back on a beautiful, sunny day. But actually he wrote Psalm 63 when he was in exile in the wilderness, running from his son, Absalom, who wanted to take his throne. In the midst of his anguish and personal pain, he wrote, “Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. . . .”

We can praise the Lord in good times, but we can also praise Him in bad times. Are you giving Him the praise that He deserves?

For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org
and
Listen to Greg Laurie's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com.

Watch Greg Laurie's weekly television broadcast on LightSource.com.

SPECIAL OFFER

In thanks for your gift, you can receive The Jesus Storybook Bible - Set


Need some inspiration to help you with family devotions? You can find it in The Jesus Storybook Bible written by Sally Lloyd-Jones, who always finds a little bit of the gospel in each story and points the child to Jesus. This special edition of The Jesus Storybook Bible Set includes a DVD and CDs of the Bible stories, read by actor David Suchet.

 

This book is our thank-you gift to you when you donate to Harvest Ministries this month.



More Greg Laurie Daily Devotions Articles