Thanksgiving is an expression of gratitude to God. The Bible tells us to, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting, and His faithfulness to all generations” (Psalm 100:4-5 NIV).
As we go through life, God wants us to use the word “thank you” through the good times as well as the challenging times. It’s easy to sing praises to Him when we’re experiencing blessing after blessing, but how can we maintain an attitude of thanksgiving during a crisis?
“Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him,”
– Job 13:15.
1 Thessalonians
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
An attitude of thanksgiving
King David wasn’t perfect. The Bible tells us that he was an adulterer and a murderer, but God still found David worthy enough to call him a man after His own heart. Why is this? You see, David’s life was filled with praise and thanksgiving. He loved God deeply and didn’t hold back on expressing it. David sang, danced, and wrote psalms in praise and thanksgiving to God.
Like David, you must have an attitude of thanksgiving. Don’t wait for something extraordinary to happen before you show gratitude. Thank God for what you’ve got now and what He’s going to do in your life, for the little things and the big things. Your thankfulness should be a reflection of your faith and complete trust in God.
The story of the ten lepers, as recorded in Luke 17:11-19, also teaches us the importance of thanksgiving. After Jesus healed the men of leprosy, only one deemed it fit to return to give thanks. Seeing this, Jesus asked him, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then He said, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” Ten men were healed of leprosy, but only one was made whole because he had an attitude of gratitude.
Thanksgiving is God’s will for you
Thanksgiving will open doors of blessings for you. Giving thanks no matter what you’re going through is also another way of expressing unconditional love for God. Like Job, we should be able to boldly say, “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him,” Job 13:15.
1 Thessalonians tells us to “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in
Christ Jesus.” We’re called to give thanks through the ups and downs, the gains and losses of life. Why? Because it’s God’s will.
Benefits of giving God thanks
Giving God thanks draws us closer to Him and strengthens our relationship with Him. Here are some more benefits of thanksgiving:
- It creates a positive atmosphere: Giving thanks would help you see the blessings in your life that you might not have noticed before. And when you focus on those blessings your spirit will be lifted. You’ll saturate the atmosphere around you with joy and peace and radiate positivity.
- It creates momentum: It’s like a flywheel or the steel propeller on a plane. It starts slow and then gains momentum until it becomes part and parcel of your life. An attitude of gratitude would attract more blessings to your life and make the world around you better.
- It pulls down strongholds: If you consistently show gratitude to God, He will consistently show up for you. Like the walls of Jericho, He will pull down spiritual strongholds in your life. The spirit of fear and uncertainty will fade away and new wells of life and hope will burst forth in their place.
While it’s easy to remain bitter and blame God when passing through a dark time or after experiencing a loss, a better approach is to look around and acknowledge there’s still a lot to be thankful for. Praise God for loved ones around your table, healing, lessons learned, restoration, the strength to live each day, and better days ahead.
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