It was Canadian Thanksgiving and I wanted to post something for it. At first I thought I'd post about all the things I love that I am grateful for (that's the fashionable thing to do on Thanksgiving). However, I began to consider this blog and the whole reason it exists: bringing glory to God. Thus, In Everything Give Thanks- Part 1 was written and I just poured out everything I could think of.
That was not the first time I've just thanked God for His blessings. A few years ago I was listening to a preacher talk about being grateful and just pouring out praises, gratitude, and glory to God. Since then many of my prayers are just prayers of thanks and all my prayers start out with thanks. Occasionally when I can't sleep I just start thanking God for things.
It's not a routine, habit, or something on my checklist. I'm actually grateful so I show my gratitude.
If you don't praise God on a regular basis, you should start, it changes your life.
While I understand that positive words make a difference and positive thinking makes a difference I am not a big promoter of either.
I like to be practical and if a situation is bad, I'm not going to lie to myself and others just to be positive.
I am, however, grateful and gratitude is a practical persons positive outlook.
I never really thought about gratitude until one of my favourite online preachers said this: 'nothing shows you are weak more than ingratitude'.
That hit me so hard I have never been the same since.
As it started to work on me I realized for myself that being grateful takes strength.
It is easy to say thank you and show your appreciation on Thanksgiving but to look at situations that seem hopeless and find something to be grateful for is something else. I did talk about that in my blog post Grateful.
God blessed me with a good home, two christian parents, all my five senses, the ability to be independent, I was born in a free country, and I'm not constantly living in fear for my life.
Just as easily I could have been born to a broken home, with God hating parents, lacking the ability to see or hear or speak, and too many issues for me to live independently.
We can't control the situations we are born into. I was born into a good one and I can't take that for granted. There are people out there who would do anything for the stability God has given me, it's wasted on me if I don't appreciate it.
If they are ever taken away I do not want to regret not praising God for them.
I know what I have and I know what I deserve.
In everything give thanks: for this is the
will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
If you are wondering what God's will is for you life, start giving thanks
And let the peace of God rule in your
hearts, to the which also ye are called in
one body; and be ye thankful.
Colossians 3:15
The amount of peace you get from being thankful is immeasurable.
There are things I would like but my gratitude for the things I have outweigh my desires for anything else.
My pastor said this a few weeks ago:
"God is good all the time. He's not good because of what He does, He is good because that's His character".
It's true.
If you think when everything is going well that God is good but when they go down the toilet, through the sewer and into the deepest most disgusting place of the ocean that He's not good- you're wrong.
God is good no matter what happens.
He gave His Son for you. That is good no matter what way you look at it.
We love him, because he first loved us.
1 John 4:19
We wouldn't know God if He didn't show love to us first. Our love for God originates with Him. We have hope because of Him, we have eternal life because of Him, we can enjoy the good things of this life because of Him. If you can't be grateful for that, you won't be grateful for anything.
I hope this was a blessing and a help to you in some way!
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