Giving Thanks

A Heart of Gratitude

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 ESV

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

What: Heart of Gratitude

Where: in every circumstance

When: Always

Why: This is the will of God

How: Without ceasing

If I stop giving thanks, I disconnect from the will of God and I loose the perspective that allows me to live a life of gratitude.

If I loose sight of gratitude and my life slips into discontentment, complaining, and conflict, how do I fix it?

There is a profound simplicity to giving thanks.

Profound Thanks

If I am thankful in all circumstance I will be thankful, all the time.

Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 ESV

1 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: 2 a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; 3 a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6 a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7 a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8 a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.

But some of these are hard to give thanks in . . .

Never forget:

Romans 8:28 ESV

28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Giving Thanks reveals the foundation of our contentment.

If I cannot give thanks in every circumstance that means my joy and desire are tied to my circumstance instead of to my relationship with God.

Simple Thanks

Giving Thanks is easy when my gratitude stems from my relationship with God.

2 Corinthians 4:15–18 ESV

15 For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. 16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Gratitude is more than Attitude!

If our lives are filled with soooooo much blessing, then our thanks should fill our lives not just pour from our lips.

How does gratitude change my behavior?

I give thanks even in the hard times which helps me not avoid the hard things in life.

I don’t complain because my focus is on the goodness of God.

I don’t loose hope because my thankfulness reminds me of God’s faithfulness.