5 Daily Devotions to Encourage TeachersSample

We have one mouth, and gratitude and complaining cannot simultaneously come out. We will either give thanks and show our gratitude and contentment, or complain and show our discontentment.

I get it. There is always going to be that student who is challenging. Or that coworker who isn’t a team player. Or that administrator who doesn’t understand what it’s like in the classroom. But, if we always rejoice (not just when we feel like it or when it’s easy) and pray continually and give thanks in ALL circumstances (not just the positive ones), then God can move in us and shift our attitude.

At the beginning of every year, I gave my students a simple composition notebook designated as their gratitude journal. At the beginning of each class, we would all take about five minutes to write a list of things we were personally grateful for in our journals. No one had to share it with anyone else, but it just shifted the room’s atmosphere.

Whether you do it with your students or make a list for yourself each day, I think you’ll find you begin to feel more content and grateful for even the smallest things.

Dear God, I want to rejoice always, even when I don’t feel like it. Help me have an attitude of gratitude by giving thanks in ALL circumstances. And as I do, replace my grumbling with contentment and joy. I love You and am so thankful for You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.