The Power of Being Thankful: 365 Devotions for Discovering the Strength of Gratitude (38 page)

Perfectionism is fueled with the tyranny of the
shoulds
and
oughts
. It is the constant nagging feeling of never being good enough. We think things like,
I should pray better, read the Bible more, and be kinder
. We instinctively want to be pleasing to God, and we are deeply afraid we aren’t. As a result, we believe God is disappointed with us because we don’t measure up.

But the pathway to God is not perfection. Some people in a crowd asked what they needed to do to please God, and the answer Jesus gave was, “Believe in the One Whom He has sent…” (John 6:29). More than anything, God wants us to trust Him and believe His Word. You can stop struggling to attain perfection and be thankful that you are righteous before God because of Jesus. You don’t have to buy or earn God’s love. It isn’t for sale—it’s free!

Father, help me to realize that I don’t have to earn Your love or approval. I thank You that I am acceptable in Your sight because the sacrifice of Jesus has given me Your righteousness. I will live my life to please You today, not because I have to earn Your love, but because I want to show my love for You.

God does not expect us to be perfect. In fact, it is precisely because we never could be perfect that He sent Jesus to save us and the Holy Spirit to help us in our daily lives. If we could do it by ourselves, we would not need help. Thankfully, Jesus came to forgive our imperfections and to wipe them away in God’s sight. We actually are perfect through Jesus, but we can never be perfect in our own performance.

Jesus did say, “Be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48 NLT), but study of the original language reveals that He meant that we should grow into complete maturity of godliness in mind and character. God is not disappointed that we have not arrived at manifesting perfect behavior, but He does delight in finding us growing into maturity.

Father, I am so thankful that You help me grow into spiritual completeness and maturity. I’m not perfect, but because of Your work, I thank You that I’m okay and I’m on my way!

God is good. Goodness is one of His many wonderful character traits to be grateful for. And because goodness is part of His character, we can expect Him to respond in that way every time. God is not good only sometimes; He is good all the time. He is good to people who don’t deserve it. He helps us even when we have done dumb things, if we will just admit our mistakes and ask boldly for His help.

We can always ask God for help: “If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him” (James 1:5).

What good news! God will give us wisdom when we have trials—He will show us the way out. Thankfully, all we need to do is ask, and He will give without finding fault with us. Amazing!

Father, when I am in a situation where I need Your wisdom and Your provision, I ask that You will provide exactly what I need. I thank You that goodness isn’t just something You display, it is Your very nature. I love You, and I thank You for Your goodness today.

Like Jesus, Paul thanked God for many things. He thanked Him that people received him as a minister. He thanked God for his partners. He thanked Him for the churches he founded. He thanked Him for the people in the churches.

In 2 Corinthians 2:14, Paul’s grateful heart is on display when he says:
“But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always leads us in triumph [as trophies of Christ’s victory] and through us spreads and makes evident the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere.”

Paul knew that it is by God’s grace that we receive every good thing that He chooses to bestow upon us. We can follow Paul’s example and dedicate our lives to giving thanks to God that He has made us trophies of Christ’s victory.

I thank You, Father, for Christ’s victory that makes my salvation and my life in You possible. Like Paul, I want to live each day thankful for Your power and wonderful work in my life. Help me to never forget Your grace is poured out to me.

Being content and being grateful go hand-in-hand. People who are discontent have never developed a habit of being appreciative and thankful for the daily blessings in their lives. Think about this: If you were in the hospital right now, you would be content with something as simple as sitting in your own home in your favorite chair, but when you were at home in your chair, perhaps you were not content then either. We always think we will be content when… but why not choose to be content right now?

Even if you don’t have what you want or need right now, keep a positive attitude and remain hopeful. Be content with what God has given you, refuse to focus on what you don’t have, love others, and stay hopeful concerning every area of your life.

I thank You, God, that You have given me so many daily blessings. Help me to be content and not to take any of them for granted. Even as I wait on You for the things I am praying for, I choose to be grateful for the blessings I live in each and every day.