The Power of Being Thankful: 365 Devotions for Discovering the Strength of Gratitude (60 page)

The Word of God teaches that Jesus understands our weaknesses. He understands them because He took on human flesh in order to identify with us, and He was tempted in every respect as we are. And while He never sinned, He is not shocked when we fail.

It’s okay to have weaknesses—it’s only human. You are probably asking the same question I did when I dared to believe this freeing truth: “If I think I am free to have weakness, won’t it just invite me to sin more?” The answer is no, it won’t.

God’s grace, and the freedom it offers, never entices us to sin more, but it does entice us to fall radically in love with Jesus. The more we realize that He loves us the way we are, the more grateful we become and the more we love Him. And that love for Him causes us to want to change for the right reason.

Father, thank You for the gift of grace. And thank You that You love me in spite of my failures and weaknesses. I know that You are strengthening me and making me more like Jesus. I am grateful for Your work, and I trust You every step of the way.

The new covenant is something to be forever grateful for. It is a better covenant that is far superior to the old. The old covenant was initiated with the blood of animals, but the new was initiated with the sinless blood of Jesus Christ. Under the new covenant, Jesus fulfilled or kept all of the Law of the old covenant and died in our place to pay for our sins and misdeeds.

Jesus took the punishment that we deserved and promised that if we would believe in Him and all that He did for us, He would forever stand in our place and our responsibility to keep the Law would be met in Him. The old covenant focused on what man could do, but the new covenant focuses on what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. (Read Hebrews 8 and 9 for more study in this area.)

I thank You, Father, that I can live in the powerful, freeing work of the new covenant. Thank You that You loved me enough to send Jesus to die for my sins. And thank You that I can live in an intimate, personal relationship with You.

We can do our best for God, but we cannot offer Him perfection, and we don’t have to feel pressure to do so.

I heard a story about a student who turned a paper in to his professor and the professor wrote on the bottom of it, “Is this the best you can do?” Knowing it was not his best, the student did the paper again, and once again the professor gave it back to him with the same phrase at the bottom. This went on for about three rounds and finally when the professor asked if it was the best he could do, he thought for a moment and answered, “Yes, I believe this is the best I can do.” Then his professor said, “Good, now I will accept it.”

All God wants is our best—He can work with that. We can be thankful that even though our best is not perfect, God can do something perfectly amazing with it!

Father, I am so thankful that You are pleased when I do my best for You, even though my best is far from perfect. Thank You that when I do my part, You are always faithful to do Your part with my life.

Perhaps you feel that God has let you down at some time in your life, or that one of His promises did not come true for you. If so, I urge you to realize that God doesn’t always work within our time frame or in the ways that we would choose, but if you continue to trust Him, you will see the goodness of God in your life.

If you’ll trust God each day, be thankful for the things He has done for you in the past, and decide to never give up, you will see Him doing amazing things in your life. God’s faithfulness surrounds Him. It is part of His character, and we can count on Him to be with us and do all that He has promised to do. Don’t let past disappointments hold you back—dare to trust God again today.

Father, help me to set aside my pain or disappointment and learn to trust You again. I realize that even when I don’t understand Your plan, Your plan is still best. Thank You for Your faithfulness and Your love for me.

God is always faithful to forgive our sins just as He promised He would. Sometimes people won’t forgive us, but God always forgives sin and then forgets it. And we can be thankful to know that there is no limit to God’s forgiveness.

People often have limits to what they are willing to forgive or how often they are willing to do it, but God’s forgiveness never runs out. People may say they forgive us, and then remind us of what we did that hurt them, but God never reminds us of our past sins, because He has forgotten them (see Hebrews 10:17).

When we are reminded of past sins, it is not God bringing them to our remembrance; it is Satan, the accuser of God’s people. Reject the lies of the enemy, and choose to receive the faithfulness of God to forgive.

I thank You today, Father, that You are always faithful to forgive. Regardless of how many times I mess up, I know that You love me and You are faithful to forgive my sins. I am grateful for Your forgiveness and I desire to live my best for You in response to Your goodness to me.