Thank You, Lord

The Bob Marley & The Wailers song “Thank You, Lord” (1992) says, “Thank you, Lord, for what you’ve done for me / Thank you, Lord, for what you’re doing now.”

An important element of life with God: that we thank him for his past work and his continual work.

As Christians, there are some obvious things we can be thankful for

Jesus’s atoning death on the cross that has brought salvation

One day we will go to heaven

We have a relationship with God

But what about what God is doing now?

Philippians 1:3–6 ESV

3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 2:13 ESV

13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

So God didn’t just do something for us in the past

He is continually working in our life

Gratitude can become a spiritual discipline in our life

The moment our child is born is an obvious time to be thankful to God

But what about a moment sitting in traffic?

Maybe we can thankful in that situation by seeing it is a time to slow down in our busy schedule, or a chance to pray.

No moment or circumstance is too small to acknowledge the good God is doing in that moment in the world

A life of gratitude helps us reflect and become present in God’s work in the world

It can take away the pressure of our having to make everything work for ourselves, helping us appreciate what is in our life and enabling us to see where God is taking us.

Gratitude quiets our busy souls, humbles our ambition, and reveals to us the good things in life and the God who gives them