Pray the Word with David Platt is a resource from Radical.net.

Whenever you're listening to this, to stop and say, I will give thanks to the Lord with my

whole heart. You think about the command we have in the New Testament, to give thanks in all

circumstances and all circumstances. I will give thanks with my whole heart. Why? Because I have

so many wonderful deeds from the Lord to recount. Just pause and think this is what I want us to do

in prayer, but I want to leave some space for you to do this at the conclusion of this prayer.

So not just to move on to whatever is next, but to spend just a moment, just thanking God

for wonderful deeds he has done. And think on two levels. Think on the level of wonderful deeds

in history. Just think of the Word. Think of what God has done over centuries, wonderful deeds.

So just to pause and thank God for his wonderful deeds over the course of history. And then

to pause and recount wonderful deeds God has done in your life and my life. When we hear this

command to give thanks in all circumstances and we think about particularly difficult circumstances,

we think about when things are not going well in our lives. And maybe we have been wronged in

this way or that way. Like how do you give thanks in the middle of those circumstances?

Well, obviously we're not thankful for evil for being wronged, but we are thankful for God's

sovereignty over this. We are thankful for Jesus' power over evil displayed in the cross and his

resurrection from the dead. We are thankful that evil does not have the last word that injustice

doesn't have the last word. We are thankful that God is our defender. You start to think of all the

ways you can give thanks to the Lord with your whole heart, even, even amidst difficulties.

So let's pray. God, we say together with the psalmist today, we will give thanks to you with our

whole heart. We praise you for your goodness in history, for your goodness in our lives. And we

will recount all of your wonderful deeds. We pause right now to recount all of your wonderful

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