As we get ready to spend time with friends and family during this Thanksgiving week, below is a great list of ways to cultivate gratitude, not just this week, but for the rest of our lives.
Take the time to check them out. 
May you all have a blessed week reflecting on the goodness of our Lord!
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Help to Increase Your Thanksgiving Appetite

By Jon Bloom (Desiring God Devotional) 

When it comes to cultivating gratitude, we need all the help we can get. As I wrote last week, thanksgiving does not come naturally to sinful people. Grumbling and disputing comes natural (Philippians 2:14). Gratitude is the heart’s response to seeing and experiencing grace. And we must intentionally look for grace. It’s all around us. But selfishness distorts the lenses of our heart-eyes. So we need scriptural prescription lenses to see right.

But once we begin to see, oh how things change. It is then that the real meaning of Thanksgiving dawns on us. We discover that the real feast of Thanksgiving is feasting on thanksgiving. Thursday’s American food feast is not the focus but is a finger that points us to a feast for our souls: God’s abounding, all-sufficient grace (2 Corinthians 9:8).

Now, if we (Americans) rush into Thursday’s celebration having barely reflected on gratitude, we will fill our stomachs but leave our souls hungry. So here are some resources that will help increase your thanksgiving appetite.

Make your debt of gratitude bigger, not smaller! (4 min) I love this interview with John Piper where he says, “the greatest Christian is the one who reaches the finish line with the most debt to God.” Christ paid your debt of sin and delights in giving you everything freely forevermore!

Bathe in the gospel! (38 min) Listen to this wonderful Thanksgiving sermon John Piper preached 25 years ago titled, “Thanks Be to God for His Inexpressible Gift.” It’s a swim in the gospel.

Pursue true gratitude. (6–7 min) Just being grateful isn’t necessarily Christian. In this brief article, Jonathan Edwards (via John Piper) helps us understand what Christian gratitude is built on so that we don’t actually commit idolatry in giving thanks.

Starve your pride. (10 min) John Piper explains how “everything, without exception, is a free gift” but that “Proud People Don’t Give Thanks.” Then he provides us with counsel on how to be free of love-blocking, joy-stealing pride.

Learn from grateful examples. (12 min) No one has been more helpful to me in both example and the nitty-gritty how-to’s of daily cultivating gratitude than Ann Voskamp. Here is an interview she gave David Mathis when she stopped by the DG studio a couple years ago. And if you haven’t yet, read her book, One Thousand Gifts.

Even in Suffering. (30 min) Years ago John Piper preached a Thanksgiving sermon titled, “Thanksgiving in Suffering.” It can be very hard to feel grateful in and for profound pain. But nothing is too difficult for God to redeem into something unspeakably beautiful. In this message, John shares a story of a young woman who suffered terrible facial burns as a child, the alcoholism of an unaffectionate father, the sexual molestation of a neighbor, a gang rape as a young teen, anorexia, bulimia, drug addiction, multiple marriages, and multiple suicide attempts. She then experienced the radical grace of God that resulted in the radical liberation of gratitude.

The Thanksgiving spread. (10 min) A few years ago David Mathis wrote an excellent post titled, “Making the Most of Turkey Time: Thanksgiving on Mission.” In cultivating our own gratitude, we don’t want to neglect the joy and need of spreading the gracious news to those who need to hear.

There’s more… Want more? Here’s a list of other resources to use as thanksgiving appetizers as you prepare to feast.

So carve out time this week to cultivate gratitude by looking at and tasting the grace of God in Christ and the thousands of gifts (even painful ones) that flow to us through Christ every single day. And let the feast of Thanksgiving mainly be a feasting on thanksgiving.
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The weekly devotionals seek to encourage you to dig deeper into Scripture as you take the time to daily read, meditate, and internalize the verses in the devotional, along with the passages provided below to give greater context. Take the time to read them throughout the week (repetition is important) and ask the Holy Spirit to help you grasp what God is showing you about Himself, about you, and how to live in light of these truths. 

Passages to read/memorize/meditate:

Philippians 2:4
2 Corinthians 2:9
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Colossians 3:15
Psalm 100:4
Psalm 118

Questions to Reflect on:

1. As you go through the recommended resources above to cultivate a disposition of gratitude, which one do you find that God is showing you to focus on the most?

by Yodit Kifle Smith
Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 
(John 6:26)
 
How many of you remember how stubborn you were as a child? You know, when we couldn’t understand why we couldn’t get our way and we would be upset at our parents and throw a tantrum?
We may not be throwing the kinds of tantrums we did as a child, but if we are honest, we throw little fits with God when we don’t get what we think we deserve. We’ve made ourselves believe that what we want for ourselves is what God wants for us, so if we aren’t aware, we end up living our Christian lives relying on a God we created in our liking, rather than God of the Bible.

In the Gospels we see the account of Jesus’ ministry on Earth. With every word He spoke, every conversation He had and every miracle He performed, He sought to reveal His identity as the Son of God and God Himself who came to save sinners (John 5). Yet, He faced opposition because those whom He came to had their own idea of who their Messiah would be. And Jesus didn’t fit their description. They completely missed the message of the very Scripture they knew in and out as Jews, which bore witness to Jesus and His identity (John 5:39).  

Then there were those who saw all the miracles He was performing (healing and feeding people) and only wanted those benefits but didn’t want the message of repentance of sins and salvation that He was proclaiming because of what it would cost them (John 6:26-27).

How about the story of the rich young ruler? He came to Jesus wanting to find out what he must do to inherit eternal life and he thought keeping all of the commandments could get him what he wanted. But Jesus knew the man’s heart and what he was blind to—the idol of his possessions. So, when Jesus tells him to go sell all he has and follow Him, the Bible tells us that the young man went away sad because he possessed so much. He didn’t want to give that up. He thought following Jesus on his own terms could work.  (Mark 10:17-27)

We read these accounts and think surely not me-I don’t do this. But the reality is we aren’t immune to this. In a day in age where Jesus is being taught to be a genie in a bottle, a co-pilot, and a moralistic teacher that wants to help you chase your dreams, it’s not surprising to see people see Jesus as those things and expect those things from Him. And the way we are taught Jesus is what our relationship will be based on.

Sisters, we must be careful. Jesus of the scriptures in not a genie in a bottle that is working to make your dreams come true. He isn’t a co-pilot that let’s you steer your own destiny. He isn’t a moralistic teacher that helps you become a better person. He isn’t a God who is looking at your works to determine your favor.

Jesus is Lord and He is our Savior. He demands complete surrender and worship-but not on our own terms. More importantly, He demands that we get Him right or we will get Him completely wrong and live our life thinking we have a genuine relationship with Him.

Whether our lives go the way we want them or not, may we continue to be diligent in growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18) and in turn see and experience the beauty of complete surrender and worship to Him.
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The weekly devotionals seek to encourage you to dig deeper into Scripture as you take the time to daily read, meditate, and internalize the verses in the devotional, along with the passages provided below to give greater context. Take the time to read them throughout the week (repetition is important) and ask the Holy Spirit to help you grasp what God is showing you about Himself, about you, and how to live in light of these truths. 

Passages to read/memorize/meditate:

John 5 (whole chapter)
John 6:26-27
Mark 10:17-27
2 Peter 3:18

Questions to Reflect on:

1. How have I been wanting God on my own terms?
2. Am I pursuing knowing Jesus rightly or have I made Him in my own liking?
3. How has this devotional encouraged me to check my heart and seek Christ rightly?

By Boyd Bailey (Wisdom Hunter Devotional)

“When he [The Lamb—Jesus] opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven  half an hour." (Revelation 8:1) 
Sometimes silence is the best strategy. We replace exhausting striving with energizing silence. Our flesh wants to engage in an emotional debate, but our spirit says wait. The outcome is much better when we pause for the Holy Spirit to calm down our conflicted heart before we confront the issue. Our daily battles are best fought with faith in Jesus at the forefront. A person may agitate us, but by God’s grace, we can refrain from a rude reaction and pray for them. We won’t allow another’s bad day to ruin our day. God can speak clearly when we are quiet and patient.
Heaven grew silent for thirty minutes (two minutes of quiet can feel endless!) in awe of God Almighty and in a solemn moment of respect for the imminent destruction of earth and its inhabitants. Evil is eventually and fully judged, secret sins or blatant bad behavior will encounter crushing consequences, but the most dismal condition of all will be morally good people who rejected Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of their life. Heaven’s silence precedes earth’s loud obliteration.
“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it” (Isaiah 30:15).
Our flesh screams for its way, but faith in the Lord’s faithfulness is foundational to our remaining silent. Our words may delay the work of God’s word. For example, if someone we know is seeking wisdom from their heavenly Father, better to pray with them than to assume we know what they need to do. Instead of prescribing a solution for them based on our own experience, we can refer them to Scripture references relevant to their situation. God speaks through His Word.
Our silence invites the Lord’s inner strength for our soul. Trusting resolve grows patience. In place of saying something we may later regret, we wait on the Spirit to speak into the situation. He may impress humility upon our heart and forgiveness on the heart of the one we let down. God can use another caring believer to bring clarity to the confusion or a solution to the problem. Surrender to Christ and invite Him to fight for you. Your silence releases His resources.
“The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent” (Exodus 14:14, NASB).
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The weekly devotionals seek to encourage you to dig deeper into Scripture as you take the time to daily read, meditate, and internalize the verses in the devotional, along with the passages provided below to give greater context. Take the time to read them throughout the week (repetition is important) and ask the Holy Spirit to help you grasp what God is showing you about Himself, about you, and how to live in light of these truths. 

Passages to read/memorize/meditate:
Revelation 8:1
Isaiah 30:15
Exodus 14:14
1 Samuel 17:37
Psalm 24:8
Psalm 35:1
Matthew 26:63
Acts 15:12

Questions to Reflect on:
1. What situations in my life require my silence than my speech?
2.How have you seen the consequence of speaking when it was better to keep silent?
3. Does silence make you feel you are not in control? If so, why?
4. How can you be better at trusting God through trusting His work rather than your words?

By Laura Hardin (WITHIN Devotional Contributor)

“Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him” (John 14:21)

A couple months ago, I realized that I had dropped the ball in disciplining my children. With a baby in one arm, my two-year-old wailing in the other, I needed my son to come to me, and he refused, ushering our family into a series of events at a local restaurant that landed with me crying in my car and needing friends to come to my rescue. 

I describe it as the lowest moment of my adult life, but at the end of the day this situation opened my eyes to the mess we make of our lives when we refuse to submit to God, when we forget that his ways are actually good for us. The Lord convicted me of not heeding his word with the same expediency I expect from my children. I had neglected to train my children up in the Lord, to train them to honor and obey their parents. I prioritized convenience instead. 

I don’t think I’m alone in the struggle to obey. I often think grace gives me space to take my time in obeying God. I want to obey on my own terms, maintaining a sense of closeness to God without fully surrendering to him.

You may not be a parent but the toddlers of the world have something to teach us all about faith in Jesus and the life it produces. Jesus taught us to be like children in how we trust him (Matthew 18:3). Instead, we are often like children when it comes to a sinful bent to only do what seems good to us. 

When the Holy Spirit prompts us to trust and obey God, the immature among us (read: me) are prone to screaming “No!” inwardly like toddlers. My son likes to tell me what he will and will not do:

“I am not going to do that right now. I am going to play with my box.” 

“I can’t talk right now.”

“I’m not going to clean right now. My feet are too small.” 

God tells us to restrain our anger and we sound a lot like my three year old: “No, I’m not going to do that. I”m going to tell this person what I really think. I”m going to let them see my irritation.”

He commands us to love someone difficult. “No, I’m going to walk in the other direction. I’m too tired for this.”

He prompts us to make a meal for a family. “No, there are other people who do that kind of stuff.”

When my toddlers disobey, I can see that they don’t trust my leadership. We disobey God for the same reason; we don’t trust that he is good, wise, and loving. We don’t believe he is the good shepherd who leads us well. We struggle to accept that happiness and freedom abound in submission to his word. So we bristle inside when anyone reminds us that obedience matters.

John 14:21 teaches that when we hear his word and obey, we love God and we gain a deeper understanding of him. God created us for this deep fellowship. This is what he’s after. Yes, his glory, but also our good. They are intrinsically tied together. And as we grow and mature, we will obey more quickly because we know the paths of righteousness are also channels of the greatest joy in God (Psalm 23:3, 16:11).
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Jesus is the path of righteousness. In him are pleasures forevermore. Only in him can we trust God and obey. We need his grace to walk in the obedience of faith this week. We need his grace to do it without delay. 
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The weekly devotionals seek to encourage you to dig deeper into Scripture as you take the time to daily read, meditate, and internalize the verses in the devotional, along with the passages provided below to give greater context. Take the time to read them throughout the week (repetition is important) and ask the Holy Spirit to help you grasp what God is showing you about Himself, about you, and how to live in light of these truths. 

Passages to read/memorize/meditate:

Psalm 119
Psalm 16
John 14:18-26
Romans 12:1-2
Romans 8:1-11
1 John 2:1-6



Questions to Reflect on:
1, How does an unwillingness to obey affect our relationship with God?
2. Because of our sinful nature, it’s common to bristle inside at the mention of obedience. In what areas of your life do you struggle to trust God? Talk to God about this.  How might you take one small step of obedience in the right direction?
3. How can you now show compassion to someone in your life who struggles to obey God right away? ​