Thankfulness

Thankful 365 - 24/7

The apostle Paul wrote to the Ephesian church telling them, among many other things, that they should “always (be) giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Let it be known that to experience the victory and fullness of joy that should be evident in any Believer’s life we must maintain a constant spirit of gratitude. And this can be done by being careful not to take for granted the most commonplace blessings of life. One Believer wrote that he became “keenly aware of my own ingratitude when I read a moving statement by a young invalid. He said, `Today I’ve experienced the most exquisite pleasure that I have ever had in my life. I was able to breathe freely for about 5 minutes.” That man’s statement should remind all of us to thank the Lord for the breathing that comes so naturally and easily that we take it for granted.

And we also need to learn to reflect on the spiritual benefits we can receive from adversity and trial. Although we are aware that God uses setbacks, heartaches, and hardships to accomplish His good purposes, we so quickly become preoccupied with a desire for deliverance that we neglect to give thanks to the Lord for what He is doing in us. An old Scottish prayer book contains a beautiful expression of praise that emphasizes the value of trials. It says that through difficulties our souls are enriched by a fuller experience of God’s Fatherly heart - His love.

So, whether life is pleasant or difficult, let’s look for reasons to give thanks every one of the 365 days of the year. We can find them all around us. As someone put it, “Conscious gratitude will enrich life’s pleasures and sweeten its pains.”