The Bible reveals that one of the most important keys to experiencing a joyful life is the practice of being habitually thankful. We can develop a thankful heart when we are grateful for the many blessings God has given to us. We can begin by making it a practice to contemplate the goodness and generosity of God. If this sort of thankfulness does not come naturally, we can learn to remind ourselves each day to be grateful for known blessings. One easy way to do this is by using the Bible as a starting point. For example, Psalm 103 was written by King David, who was a man of praise. In it he reminds himself of God’s goodness to him, which elicits praise from his lips.
Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; Psalm 103:1–2 (NASB95)
If we read the entire psalm, we will see all things for which he thanked God. His list is a good one for us, too. If we prefer the New Testament, Paul gives us several passages that we can use as starters for being grateful, such as Ephesians Chapter One. I suggest that we read these verses slowly, giving thanks for each blessing listed. You will be amazed who this leads to genuine worship from the heart.
Sadly, many of us take God and blessings for granted, complaining about everything that doesn’t seem to go our way. Complaining is a sin that God punished severely during Israel’s wilderness journey. Those chapters were written to teach us a valuable lesson. If you want to check it out, read through Numbers and see how many times God came down hard on complainers.
When we gripe about our circumstances, we accuse God of failing to deal equitably and lovingly with us. It is an overt act of rebellion.
The Bible clearly teaches that our Lord is working everything out for our good and his glory.
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 (ESV)
When we complain, we call God a liar.
Thankfulness is built upon the conviction that God loves us and consistently acts on our behalf in a way that is good, powerful, and wise.
It becomes habitual when we surrender to God all our demands and desires, believing that he is generous and will give us everything we need. It is complete when we would rather glorify God than do anything else, which means we let go of our demand to understand why he allows pain and difficulties to come into our lives.
Thankful people are happy people who bring honor and glory to their Creator and encouragement to others.
The practice of being thankful is simple to grasp but costly to put into practice. Our “flesh,” the residual part of us connected to Adam’s sin and not yet under Christ’s rule, is never grateful because it has no faith. We must resist this inner pull to complain and rely on our spirit within, which is connected with God’s Holy Spirit, to give thanks to God. At first, this may seem difficult, but as it becomes more of a habit, it will come more (super)naturally.
Are we willing to lay down our pride and become thankful in all things? If so, why not start now?
Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV)
Prayer
Father in heaven, thank you for creating me. Thank you for the gift of life. Thank you for all the good things you have given to me over the years and your promise to provide and care for me forever. Thank you for sending your Son, Jesus, to die on the cross and rise again, so that I could be forgiven and restored to a right relationship with you. I also give thanks for the difficult things going on in my life right now. (List them out loud.) I believe you are working all things out for my good and your glory. Glorify yourself through my life, Lord, and through the situations and circumstances surrounding me. Let me bring glory to you by modeling trust and thankfulness to others. I believe you love me and always have my best interests in mind. Amen.
