Instead of Grumbling, Give Thanks

[Instead of Grumbling, Give Thanks]( Current Teaching Series [The Habits of Happiness]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [Instead of Grumbling, Give Thanks]( By Rick Warren — 06/17/2022 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd like to share a Daily Devotional from Pastor Rick with you&body= “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV) Fretting and fighting over the small stuff will always cause you to lose your happiness. This is a hard habit to break because people are negative by nature and conditioned by culture. Ever since Adam and Eve, we have been going around excusing and accusing. We excuse ourselves for the mistakes we make, and we also accuse everybody else for our mistakes. We say, “If I just had a different spouse, then I’d be happy. If I had just never gotten married, then I’d be happy. If I just had children, then I’d be happy. If my children would leave home, then I would be happy.” That’s “when and then” thinking. But you are as happy as you choose to be! You can’t blame anybody else for your unhappiness because happiness is a choice. You have to stop excusing and accusing; you have to stop fretting and fighting over the small stuff. The Bible says, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure” (Philippians 2:14-15 NIV). Those may be some of the most difficult verses in the Bible. But the scariest verse in the Bible to me is Matthew 12:36, where Jesus says, “And I tell you that on the Judgment Day people will be responsible for every careless thing they have said” (NCV).  That ought to send shivers up your spine. How many times have you complained, grumbled, or argued about something when you shouldn’t have been sweating the small stuff? The first law of life is this: Don’t sweat the small stuff. Law number two is this: It’s almost all small stuff! The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (NIV). Study after study has shown that gratitude is the healthiest attitude. What do you have to be thankful for? Remember, no matter what is going on in your life, God is always with you, God is always in you, and God is always for you. That’s cause for gratitude, not grumbling. [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - Do you think you will have to give an account to God for the “small” things you’ve complained about? Why or why not? - According to 1 Thessalonians 5:18, what is God’s will for your life? - What are some practical ways you can practice gratitude throughout the day? Are you ready to join God’s family? God made you to love you, and one of the places you see that most clearly is on the cross. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, God made it possible for you to become part of his family for eternity. No matter what you’ve done or where you’ve been, you’ve got a place in God’s forever family ready and waiting for you. The invitation is wide open. Just believe and receive. Are you ready? Here’s a prayer you can start with: “Dear God, I know when I die, I’m going to give an account of my life to you. I know I have sinned against you, and I have lived by my plan, not yours. I want that to change, starting right now. I want to turn away from my sins and toward you. “Thank you for sending Jesus to die for all that I’ve done wrong so that I don’t have to pay the penalty. I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness. I know only your grace can save me, Lord. I could never be good enough to get into a perfect place. “Jesus, thank you for loving me so much that you took all my guilt on yourself. You made me acceptable for heaven, and I humbly ask you to save me. I believe in you, Jesus, and I believe you will keep your promise to save me and do your good work in me as I try to follow and serve you all of my life. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.” If you just prayed to accept Jesus, please email me at Rick@PastorRick.com and let me know about it. I’d like to send you some free materials to help you start your journey with Jesus. The post [Instead of Grumbling, Give Thanks]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd like to share a Daily Devotional from Pastor Rick with you&body= [Get The Habits of Happiness Bible Study when you give a gift to support Daily Hope!]( Real, lasting happiness can only be found by following God’s commands. That’s why Pastor Rick created The Habits of Happiness Bible study to show you how happiness that’s grounded in God’s unconditional love runs deeper than any difficult circumstance, feeling, or relationship you experience. This interactive, full color, hardcover book is filled with Scripture, biblical truths, practical lessons, application exercises, and prayers to guide your journey. It’s a comprehensive study tool that will help you develop biblical habits that lead to true and lasting happiness. And thanks to a $50,000 Matching Grant, your gift today will be DOUBLED to reach even more people with the certain hope of Christ! [LEARN MORE]( [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)]( Includes 8 full-length messages from Pastor Rick's series The Habits of Happiness. [LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: Grow Healthy Relationships Message 2: How to Be Happy No Matter What Message 3: The Humble Path to Happiness Message 4: How to Keep Your Heart Happy Message 5: Happiness Can Be Learned Message 6: Five Daily Habits for Happiness Message 7: How to Keep from Stressing Out Message 8: God's Promise to the Generous [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life]( is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan]( to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](. © 2022 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link below. Sent to: {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, 23182 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, United States