During Thanksgiving month I'm sharing devotionals on the topic of Thankfulness from my book Devotions for Working Women. Enjoy!

Being Thankful Truly Honors God

Psalm 50:14, 23 (NLT)

“What I want instead is your true thanks to God; I want you to fulfill your vows to the Most High.” “…But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me. If you keep to my path, I will reveal to you the salvation of God.”

Psalm 51:17 (NLT)

The sacrifice you want is a broken spirit. A broken and repentant heart, O God, you will not despise.

The people of Israel used to give many offerings to God to obtain forgiveness for their sins. Many people turned this into a tradition with no true meaning or repentance from their hearts. God has not changed today. He has been and will always be, interested in one thing—our hearts. He just wants us to be thankful to Him for everything He has done for us, starting with salvation. What a gift! We must thank God daily and every moment for it. Giving thanks from the heart is what He’s after—a broken and repentant spirit willing to be changed, forgiven, and loved by God.

With today’s lifestyle we all try to do too much. Sometimes we commit ourselves to serve in work committees, kids’ activities, and even church activities—some out of guilt and sense of obligation. These activities may be good, but before we commit to anything new, we must make sure it will not take away time with the Lord. It is better to spend that time with Him than to be occupied with one more thing to do. We honor God by having a thankful heart and spending time with Him.