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Key Bible Verse: No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Bonus Reading:Colossians 2:6–7

I returned from a trip late at night. My wife met me at the door with a recital of things that had broken while I was gone: A closet door was out of its track, a refrigerator shelf had broken loose, a toilet wouldn't stop leaking.

The next morning I began to grow bitter as I hugged a smelly porcelain bowl, trying to fit a wrench around a nut in the back. I was tired. I wanted a day off. No, I deserved a day off.

Then I remembered how we'd prayed for God to provide this house. I remembered how cold it had been outside and how nice it was to come into a place that was warm. I began thanking God for space, protection from the weather, and a living room that my wife could decorate in the way she loves doing.

Being thankful doesn't repair a leaky toilet. But it does transform our spirit, making it at peace and even joyful to carry us through the toughness of life. It drives out the spiritually degenerative illness of bitter, negative thinking. I like to think of thankfulness as God's "spiritual air freshener." It replaces the stale odor of resentment with clean, fresh-smelling air for the soul to breathe.

—Gary Thomas in The Glorious Pursuit

My Response: A resentment that has blocked thankfulness for me is …

Thought to Apply: So much has been given to me, I have no time to ponder that which has been denied.

—Helen Keller (blind, deaf, and mute author and lecturer)

Adapted from The Glorious Pursuit (NavPress, 1998) by permission.

Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.

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Prayer for the Week

Grant me a heart, O Lord, that honors You because it is grateful.

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