Although many people have turned the page from Thanksgiving to Christmas, it is still Thanksgiving weekend, and I want to talk about why we should make a habit—a daily habit—of thanking God.
There are two particular scriptures that come to mind when I ponder the notion of gratitude. Both are penned by the apostle Paul.
“In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:6
I would like to offer ten benefits of living with an attitude of gratitude by giving thanks to God, even when you might not feel like it.
TEN BENEFITS OF GIVING THANKS
- Giving thanks takes the focus off of you. Consider your life from someone else’s perspective causes you to raise your view from yourself to those around you. Giving thanks might come out as a prayer, ‘What do I have to be thankful for Lord?” With that one question you automatically connect to God and in effectively ask for His perspective.
- Giving thanks leads to an eternal perspective. God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8–9). When we stop to ask God for His perspective on our lives in order to offer thanksgiving, we gain His eternal perspective.
- Equipped with eternal perspective, giving thanks increases your trust in God. He is Jehovah Jireh—the Lord who provides. Giving thanks acknowledges all that He has provided for you and grows your trust that He will continue to provide.
- Giving thanks acknowledges that God is at work in your life. It recognizes that God is working all things together for your good. (Romans 8:28).
- Giving thanks transforms lack into gratitude. Giving thanks acknowledges what you have, not what you don’t have, want, or need.
- Giving thanks transforms anxiety into peace. If you put Philippians 4:6 in context with the verse that follows, you see that Paul goes on to give the result of praying with thanksgiving.
“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7
7. Giving thanks leads to contentment. The apostle Paul goes on in Philippians 4 to say that he had learned to be content regardless of his circumstance. I suggest that Philippians 4:6–7 offers the formula for that contentment.
Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. Philippians 4:11
8. An attitude of gratitude is essential for joy. In his first letter to the Thessalonians, the apostle Paul admonishes them to rejoice, pray, give thanks. I would suggest it is out of the prayers of thanksgiving that joy springs.
“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18
I believe approaching your trials while maintaining your gratitude is the how behind the verse in James that says, “Consider it all joy, by brethren, when you encounter various trials” (James 1:2)
9. Giving thanks bears witness to your faith and to our Lord. When you give thanks in the midst of trials, your faith shines to all who encounter you.
10. Giving thanks changes your why to what or how. Victims caught in self-pity ask God the question Why? They stay stuck in the victim mindset. Those who seek God and His purpose in life’s circumstances with the attitude of gratitude change their mindset to one that asks “How can I co-labor with God?” Or “What can I learn from this situation?
In conclusion I want to suggest that approaching life with an attitude of gratitude—a mindset that looks for things to be thankful for—we live a healthier life mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually,