A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving: 30 Days of Rejoicing in God’s Goodness

by Wendy Speake

When life is bright and blessings abound, are you quick to feel grateful and lift a song of thanks to God? What about the seasons when heartache and hopelessness overwhelm, and deep soul-sadness threatens? When life feels awful, do you find it awfully hard to persevere in praise and rejoice in God's goodness? Discover strength and renewal in times when praise feels more like a sacrifice than a natural overflow of the heart.

God's Word is we are to bless Him at all times! But it can be difficult when we don't feel blessed—or are simply distracted by all of our blessings. A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving will help

Come honestly to the Lord regardless of life's circumstances.Witness the power of praise to break through spiritual barriers.Rejoice in trials, knowing that they produce endurance, character, and hope.Maintain a steadfast heart of worship when life feels unsteady.Thank God for His character, even when we don't understand His ways. 

In the first half of this uplifting 30-day devotional, you will explore the profound gift that praising and thanking God is to you! Then, as you progress, you will shift your focus from those personal benefits to the One who is simply worthy of your worship.

Wendy Speake, bestselling author of The 40-Day Sugar Fast and The 40-Day Social Media Fast, invites you to consider "fasting from asking" along this journey. Yes, that's For 30 days you'll turn your petitions into praise as you lift your eyes from yourself and your circumstances to the praiseworthy and thankworthy One! This 30-day "ask fast" will teach you to give God your praise and thanks at all times, every day, even when it feels like a sacrificial offering.

240 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2026

About the author

Wendy Speake is an actress who appeared on shows such as JAG, Star Trek Voyager, and Roswell, where she discovered a longing to tell stories that edify women. Today she ministers to women through storytelling and biblical life applications. Her first book, Triggers, was released in 2015.

Reviews

[Deanna (she_reads_truth_365) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bookish Thoughts: This 30 day devotional was such a blessing to me. I have never participated in an “ask fast” and it was life changing. I was able to take the focus off myself and focus more on God. I thanked and praised God solely for who He is…This was a great reminder to always praise and bless His name no matter your circumstances!

I received a complimentary physical ARC from publisher Harper Collins and Thomas Nelson. Thank you for the opportunity to preview this book. All opinions are my own.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is meant to help people going through a hard time, yet it is also a good reminder for those not currently being challenged with difficulties. It is a call to give God a sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise for 30 days in lieu of asking him for anything. I like this idea for strengthening your faith especially in hard times, yet again, it’s good for relatively smooth times too. The author writes with transparency about her own struggles and shares good insights into Bible stories. She speaks of the value of lament, which is a topic needs more coverage from pastors and Christian authors. Each day’s devotion is short and convenient, yet also meaty for more contemplation. She frequently mentions a companion journal for the book, which could help you get even more from this material. Overall this is a helpful book to strengthen your faith.
I received a preview copy from NetGalley.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

How is your prayer life? Are you looking for inspiration?

A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving: 30 Days of Rejoicing in God’s Goodness by Wendy Speake is devotional that has a unique premise to have an “ask fast.” Instead of praying to ask for something, this devotional asks you to instead praise God for thirty days. The inspiration is Psalm 100:

His Steadfast Love Endures Forever
A Psalm for giving thanks.
[1] Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
[2] Serve the LORD with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
[3] Know that the LORD, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
[4] Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
[5] For the LORD is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations. (ESV)

Each day of the thirty-day period has a theme. It starts with a Bible verse. Author Wendy Speake describes her thoughts and life experiences on the Bible quote. There are questions to make you think about your own faith and a great prayer at the end of the devotion. There is also inspiration for journaling in each devotional.

Author Wendy Speake go the idea for the “ask fast” from a woman that she met on a plane trip who described how an “ask fast” had helped her faith journey. The conclusion of this devotional had a great description of how writing the book has impacted the author.

This was a positive devotional that made me think about all I must be grateful for and how to not just focus on myself, but on God. It was a good reminder that God should be praised in both good and bad times.

A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving: 30 Days of Rejoicing in God’s Goodness by Wendy Speake is a positive devotional that will deepen your praise and gratitude for God. It’s a perfect devotional for fall or any time of year.

Book Source: Thank-you to @wpublishing @wendy_speake @tlcbooktours for a review copy of this book as part of the TLC Book Tour.

This review was first posted on my blog at: https://lauragerold.blogspot.com/2026...

[Jennie · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

This is the perfect book for the season to read, A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving – 30 Days of Rejoicing in God’s Goodness by Wendy Speake. When I think of November, I think of being thankful! This would be a great book to read each day in November. The focus is on praising God and being thankful, not asking from God, but a month of praise and thanks! I can’t think of a better thing to focus on this time of the year! Wendy, has wrote several other type of devotional books, but in my opinion this is one of the best. Biblically sound and focuses on Jesus. She is inviting us to take a break from asking God to provide, protect, rescue, or even save. Instead, we will simply praise and thank Him for His ability to provide, to protect, to rescue, and even to save. I love the reorientation! It will help us stop focusing on ourselves, and instead focusing on Jesus!

Each days reading will take less than 10 minutes, but there is also a free journal you can download and do the daily challenge. Which I would recommend to get the most of your reading. This is a great way to start a new faith habit!

Few quotes to get you started that I highlighted:

The breakthrough we need is to break free from our self-focused and reorient ourselves to a God-focus, regardless of what we are enduring or enjoying.
Shift your focus from what you want to the One who knows what you need.
When we bring God our thanks from a place of not-enough, we acknowledge that He is our enough.
In Hebrews 13:15, we’re told to “continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips praising His name”. God asks us thank Him when we don’t feel thankful, and to bless Him when we don’t feel blessed.
God never asked us to hold on tight to this life, only to hold on tight to Him.
God’s sovereignty means we can relinquish control and relax our death grip on everything and everyone around us.
As you bring your thanks to the altar, God will alter you.

[Fallon · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars ✨

Thank you so much to Thomas Nelson for the Advanced Reader’s Copy! ARC was through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

🩵 30 Day Devotional
🩵 Praise and Worship Jesus
🩵 30 Days of Fast from asking
🩵 Real and genuine

Oh, how my soul needed this reminder. Knowing God’s attributes, knowing His name, and knowing how He is worthy of praise, no matter the circumstances, it is a relief.

No matter what you're experiencing dear reader, this devotional helps get to the heart of the Truth: Jesus. This books dives into the Word, points to Jesus while being real on this journey of life.

“ ‘I’m coming back to the heart of worship . . . It’s all about you, Jesus.’ ” [Chapter Twenty-Two: The Heart of Worship]

Wendy Speake delivers another wonderful devotional that pulls back the layers of her own experience with sorrow and anxiety, replacing them with true praise and thanksgiving. Praising the One who sees us. Thanking the One who knows everything that we have done and loves us and personally invites us to return to Him.

I will reread this spectacular tool like Wendy’s previous books: The 40-Day Social Media Fast, The 40-Day Sugar Fast, and The 40-Day Feast. Thank you Wendy for writing this devotional, always encouraging and always pointing to Jesus, our hope.

A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving: 30 Days of Rejoicing in God’s Goodness releases on Tuesday, September 1st! Ask your local libraries for a copy, purchase through the local bookstore, or see if your friends will be doing it as a bible study. Enjoy! 😊

P.S. My kindle has so many highlights. Plus my notebook got a lot of Bible Verses and quotes from this devotional!

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving by Wendy Speake is a meaningful and timely devotional that encourages us to praise God not only when life is going well, but also when praise feels difficult and costly.

I especially appreciated the reminder that our worship shouldn’t be dependent on our circumstances. There are seasons when our hearts overflow with gratitude, but there are also seasons of disappointment, uncertainty, and heartache when choosing praise truly becomes a sacrifice. This devotional gently encourages us to shift our focus from what we are asking God to do to who God is and why He is worthy of our praise.

The concept of “fasting from asking” for 30 days was especially thought-provoking. Instead of continually bringing our requests before God, we are encouraged to intentionally turn our petitions into praise and thanksgiving. What a beautiful way to redirect our hearts and cultivate a deeper awareness of God’s goodness, faithfulness, and character.

This devotional offers encouragement for anyone who wants to develop a more steadfast heart of worship, especially during challenging seasons. It reminded me that we can praise God even when we don’t understand His ways or see the outcome we are hoping for.

If you’re looking for a devotional that will challenge you to grow in gratitude, strengthen your faith, and fix your eyes more firmly on the One who is worthy of all praise, I highly recommend A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving. It is a beautiful invitation to rejoice in God’s goodness—at all times and in every circumstance.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

[Dana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 30 days of Praise and Thanksgiving devotional was a very special devotional for me. I am so honored I was able to read it and soak it in over the last several days. I’ve read one other book by Wendy Speake before and I truly love her books. This was a true heartfelt devo that she shares about her life with lots of nuggets of wisdom & truth. I love the scriptures in here, she doesn’t just gloss over God’s word like alot of Devotionals do. She really delves into Praise and Worship with scripture and crying out to God. I will be most definitely going back to this again and again. It’s a good devotion to do during Thanksgiving in November, so that’s probably something I’ll be doing again. A well spent 30 days to get into why we take time to really worship and praise God for His Word and work in our lives. I could go on and on with all the things I highlighted and tabbed but I’d never have enough space for that.

Thank you W Publishing and author Wendy Speake for my gifted copy.

[Elaine Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wendy Speake is the author of books that challenge Christians to a particular fast--sugar or social media. Here, she proposes another fast, but this time it's an "ask fast," meaning refraining from asking God for for things for one month. Instead, your prayers & meditations are on His goodness & generosity already in your life. Where you might usually pray something like, "God, please heal my friend who is facing a scary diagnosis," you could turn that prayer into, "God, I know that you are the great Healer. You have chosen in you wisdom to allow this trial. I am so thankful that we never walk alone. You are always with us. And we will praise you for your steady presence & comfort." It's not that asking God for healing is wrong. It is an exercise in focusing our prayers on God & not on ourselves. It's a really positive practice that I hope to become better at! So, if you are looking to grow in this area of prayer, this might be a good book to lend some structure to that.

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free copy of, A Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving, by Wendy Speake, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Sometimes are lives get so busy and we forget to Thank God, for his blessings in our life. This is a 30 day devotional to praising and Thanking God, for all he does for us. I thought this was good devotional.