2 Free Family Devotions About Gratitude and Patience

Summer break offers families and kids some reprieve from the busyness of the school year, but it can also surface some struggles. Everyone may be spending more time together, and patience might need a boost. There’s less structure in kids’ days, inviting boredom to take root. Help families overcome these summer struggles with the two timely and doable family devotions. They’ll help parents point their family’s hearts to joy, gratitude for each day, and how God’s patience with us can help us show patience too.

Family Devotion 1: God Gives Us Each Day

Read aloud: “This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).

Say: Some days, saying and meaning the words in Psalm 118:24 is easy! Other times, those words might say the opposite of what you’re feeling. On hard days, choosing to rejoice—to celebrate and be glad—can seem impossible.

Life has ups and downs for everyone. But no matter what’s going on each day, we can choose to have joy because of God! Complete one of these sentences, picking the one that’s closest to how you feel about today.

• This is a hard day, but I can choose joy because God’s given me…
• Today’s just OK, but I can still have big joy because God is…
• This day has been amazing, and my joy is overflowing because God…

With practice and being patient with yourself, you can find joy in each day. You can always ask God for his help, too! And for the days it’s just too hard, our loving God is ready to help you try again with a fresh, new day.

Think & Talk

Ask: How have you seen God’s love and goodness today?

Read & Do

Read Psalm 118:1. Then go through the alphabet naming something to thank God for that starts with each letter in order. Family members can take turns naming things and can help each other as needed.

Say & Pray

Pray together and give each person a chance to personally say “thank you” to God. Saying those two simple words can turn hearts toward gratitude for God—melting away stress, hurt feelings, worries, and more. Then brainstorm together something joyful you can do as a family with what’s left of this day the Lord has made.

Fun Fact

Joy is more than an emotion, and it helps us physically and spiritually. Joy can lower stress, help you fight illness, and give your mood a big boost. Choosing joy is kind of like taking vitamins each day—helping our bodies, minds, and souls rejoice and be glad!

Family Devotion 2: God Is Patient

Read aloud: “But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and merciful, slow to become angry, and rich in unfailing love” (Nehemiah 9:17).

Say: Nearly 70 years after the Israelites’ exile in Babylon, God restored them to their homeland—Jerusalem! He provided all they needed to rebuild their Temple and the walls around the city.

Then when they heard the Book of the Law again after so long, the people confessed their sins. They stood for hours, repenting for all the ways they’d turned from God. Then they celebrated his goodness, mercy, and patience. No matter how many times they turned away, God’s patient love never wavered or went away!

Let’s make today a celebration of all God has done in our family’s life! God patiently gives us his love and mercy—time and time again.

Think & Talk

Ask: What’s the first thing you like to do when you get home after being away? Why?

Read & Do

Read Nehemiah 9:17 once more. Then bake something that you can’t wait to eat! While it bakes (or even just toasts) talk about what it means to be slow to become angry. When might God want us to show that kind of patience?

Say & Pray

Nehemiah 9 is filled with God’s people telling their history with God—all the ways he’d been faithful to them (in spite of their faithlessness). Pray together and thank God for his hand in your family’s story. Talk about specific things you’re thankful for in the past.

Fun Fact

The book of Ezra tells about God’s people returning to Jerusalem after decades in exile. The phrase “the God of heaven” is used nine times in the book—that’s more than any other Bible book! This title for God shows God’s sovereignty over any kingdom or leader.

These simple family devotions are adapted from two take-home pages in Group’s new All Together Sunday School series of lesson books. The lessons are thoughtfully sculpted for when you have kids of all ages in one room. For more ideas and insights for the families you serve, check out these posts!