Choose Gratitude

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (I Thessalonians 5:18)

Yesterday we talked about the importance of being habitually thankful, how no matter what is going on in our lives, we can choose to be grateful. And while this is a super important step to practicing gratitude, it’s not the only step we should be taking. Paul gives us a couple of more ways we can be thankful in Scripture, so let’s look at those now.

After being habitually thankful, Paul tells us that we should be happily thankful. I’ve learned that anything that God commands me to do is always for my best and for my benefit. A grateful person will be a happier person. A grateful person will be a holier person. A grateful person will be a healthier person.

You may not always feel thankful, but you should work harder to think about saying “Thank you.” It is better to say, “Thank you” and not really mean it, than to mean it and not really say it. Being grateful will have a positive effect on you, because happiness and joy follow gratitude. So we need to be happily thankful.

Finally, Paul tells us we should be humbly thankful. I don’t know what you are going through right now or what burdens you may be bearing or what trouble you might be in. If you are completely ungrateful and there is not an ounce of gratitude in your heart even in the midst of your circumstances, you are out of the will of God.

Now, be encouraged. When Paul says this is the will of God, he is not only saying this is what God desires for you to do, but it is what God enables you to do. God never commands us to do anything He does not give us the power to do. I know I can give thanks in all things, because it is God’s will and what God wants me to do and wills me to do, He enables me to do.

Remember, God’s will for you is always what is best for you. An attitude of gratitude will change your life. It will shield you from cynicism. It will keep you from criticism. It will protect you from pessimism. It will draw you close to God and will draw God close to you. If you have a heart for God, you will have grateful heart. It will change the way you see things. In fact, one of the greatest ways to change how you feel about things is to change the way you see things. So choose gratitude today, and as you do, choose to be habitually grateful, happily grateful, and humbly grateful.

Dear Father, thank you for Paul’s words of encouragement about gratitude. I pray that you would help me to be habitually thankful, happily thankful, and humbly thankful no matter what I’m walking through or what season of life I’m in. In Jesus’ name, amen.