Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 5:20).
If we never received another thing from God for the rest of our lives, we could still fill each day with genuine gratitude:
“Thank You, God, for this new day.”
“Thank You for life so that I can serve You.”
“Thank You for each breath I can use to praise You.”
“Thank You for health.”
“Thank You, Lord, for strength.”
But somehow we make the choice to turn from all that we’ve received and to focus on what we still want. We minimize the blessings of life and magnify every negative circumstance we encounter. The litany of complaints begins.
When we focus on the negative around us, life starts to feel like a wilderness.
Instead, we need to grow in our level of gratitude. Thankfulness is a spiritual discipline that we can learn.
- “continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name”(Hebrews 13:15).
- “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”(1 Thessalonians 5:18).
- “Be filled with the Spirit. . . . giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”(Ephesians 5:18b, 20).
Pray
Lord God, I choose today to say thanks. Though my life is far from perfect, I choose to thank You for all that’s good in my life. I want to grow in this spiritual discipline of gratitude, and that requires the Holy Spirit’s sanctification and my willingness. By faith, I thank You even for the hard things in my life, for You use those to grow me. I love You, I trust You, so I can thank You in every circumstance. I want to give “thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of [my] Lord Jesus Christ,” in whose name I pray, amen.
Adapted by Pastor Derek Wadsworth from Dr. James MacDonald