"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thessalonions 5:18) No matter what, we are called to give thanks. As Christians, we are supposed to have that thankful heart. Why should we not be thankful? We have Heaven, God, and a relationship with our creator? What are we to not be thankful about? "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." (Colossians 3:17)
Imagine this. You pray before bed and wake up. When you wake up that next morning, you only get what you thanked God for the day before. How many of us we have a bed or blanket? How many of us would wake up with all four walls surrounding us and the roof over our hears? How many of us would wake up to breakfast, to sunlight, to clothes, to hearing nature, to sight, to our hands and feet, to our health, to our sanity. Over all, how many of us would wake up at all? How grateful are we, really?
How can we become more grateful? What can we do? Over all, just realize what you have. Not everyone has had food in the past three days. Not everyone your age woke up this morning. No everyone has the same opportunities you have. If you say, "my life is so bad," that is not true. Look at you right now. You are reading off of the internet about God. Some countries won't even allow anyone to worship anyone other than their god, so you are blessed with freedom. So many people don't even have internet access or a place to get it, much less a laptop or a phone or a friend that can let them use the internet. You are blessed! Your life may not be easy, but you always have some reason to thank God. If we think with Him as the center of our lives, we always have a reason to be thankful. "Through Him let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge His name." (Hebrews 13:15)
Let us also be thankful for God's help! He does not need to help us, yet He does so out of love. "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." (1 Corinthians 10:13) It is by God's good grace alone that we have the strength to overcome sin and that we now have the ability to triumph. God has given us the strength to change from a sinner to a saint by His blood. If that is not a reason to give thanks to God, I do not know what is! He has given us countless reasons to praise Him and give Him thanks.
How do we thank God for all of these good things? From a working state of mind, to a living body, to the ability to feel His love, to His son dying on the cross for us. "I appeal to you therefore, brother, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." (Romans 12:1) If we want to thank God, we lift up our days to Him. We let what was our become His. Let us be thankful for everything that we are. Let us give Him our time, our energy, our words, our everything. Let us thank Him every morning and every night, and let us show Him our gratitude through our words and actions. Even when things look bad, let us be grateful to God for the good He has done for us.
"Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same thing to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you." (Philippians 3:1)
-D
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