Douglas’ day started off very poorly. There was a storm the night before, and all the alarm clocks in his house reset. He and his whole family were late for the day, and that caused all sorts of problems for Douglas. He forgot his paper that he had been working on all weekend; he had to get the school lunch, and they were having eggplant (which he HATES); and when he got home, he realized that in their rush they had forgotten to let the dog out, so Douglas found a stinky surprise in his room that he had to clean up. That night, he was watching TV, and the news was reporting on a forest fire that had burnt down almost a whole town. They showed a family who had lost their home, and Douglas thought, “Well, at least I’m not them.” But this family said that they were grateful to be alive, and they even seemed happy! Douglas learned that the happiest people aren’t the people who have the most going for them—the happiest people are the people who are grateful for what they have. This family was happier than Douglas, and they lost everything they owned!
Douglas began to think about his rotten day, and realized there were all sorts of good things that came out of the troubles he was having. If we have an attitude of gratitude and we choose to be thankful for what we have, great things can happen. Let’s learn gratitude and thankfulness, and to rejoice in the Lord always.
“Gratitude” Bible Verses:
- 1 Thessalonians 5:18 | Give thanks in everything
- Colossians 2:6-7 | Overflow with thankfulness
- Psalm 100 | Enter the gates with thanksgiving
- Luke 17:11-19 | The grateful leper
- Matthew 20:1-15 | Don’t envy others
- Psalm 136:1 | Give thanks to God
“Gratitude” Family Time Questions:
• Why is gratitude so important?
• Why is gratitude so difficult?
• What are some things in your life that you are grateful for?
Prayer:
Dear God, thank you for all of the many ways that you bless me every day. Please help me to always have an attitude of gratitude. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Would You Like to Download this Video?
This video and mini-devotional are free to download for use in your ministry. Click the buttons below to download.
Suggested Donation: $10
We want to make sure that there is no barrier keeping people from using our content to teach kids about Jesus. With that in mind, even though $10 is a fair price for downloading this video, we’ve chosen to make it free to download from this page. We are only able to keep making these videos because of the grace of God and the generosity of the less than 0.2% of our viewers who choose to support us financially. If you are blessed by the ministry of Douglas Talks, would you consider making a donation? Every little bit helps!
Terms of Use:
Video Permissions
If you choose to download this video, you have our permission to:
- Display this video during in-person gatherings (such as during church or in a classroom), unless you charge a fee to watch (don’t sell tickets to watch this video).
- Include this video as a part (not the whole) of any video lessons you livestream and/or upload to your website or social media page, unless you charge a fee for access. Do not upload this video to your website or social media page if this video is more than 75% of your upload. For example, this video may be a part of your 45-minute Sunday school lesson that you livestream on Facebook and then upload to your church’s YouTube channel, but you may not upload this video by itself to your website or social media page. If you want to share this video by itself, simply post a link to this webpage or this video on the Douglas Talks YouTube channel.
- Alter or make additions to this video for use in your ministry, such as translating and dubbing, adding captions, or even editing out a portion you disagree with.
If you wish to include this video in your product or service (such as a Sunday school curriculum or a video streaming website), please contact us at info@douglastalks.com to discuss.
PDF Permissions
Feel free to use this mini-devotional PDF however you would like, outside of commercial purposes. Make copies, share within your organization, post on social media, etc. Just don’t sell it.