Thankful in ALL Things
Are we thankful no matter what? Perhaps you have lost your health or a loved one. Such circumstances can be tremendously difficult. Even so, we all have much for which to be thankful. There’s a story of a man who had every right to be bitter but wasn’t.
The next footsteps in the corridor he knew might be those of the guards taking him away to his execution. His only bed was the hard, cold stone floor of the dark, cramped prison cell. Not an hour passed when he was free from the constant irritation of the chains and the pain of the iron shackles cutting into his wrists and legs.
He was separated from friends, unjustly accused, and brutally treated. If ever a person had a right to complain, it was this man languishing almost forgotten in a harsh Roman prison. But instead of complaints, his lips rang with words of praise and thanksgiving!
The man was the Apostle Paul, a man who had learned the meaning of true thanksgiving, even in the midst of great adversity. Earlier, when he had been imprisoned in Rome, Paul wrote, “Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:19-20).
Think of it: Always giving thanks for everything no matter the circumstances!
Thanksgiving for Paul was not a once-a-year celebration, but a daily reality that changed his life and
made him a joyful person in every situation.
Thanksgiving to God for all His blessings should be one of the most distinctive marks of the believer in Jesus Christ. We must not allow a spirit of ingratitude to harden our heart and chill our relationship with God and with others.
Nothing turns us into bitter, selfish, dissatisfied people more quickly than an ungrateful heart. And nothing will do more to restore contentment and the joy of our salvation than a true spirit of thankfulness.
Why should we be thankful? We should have a heart of gratitude because God has blessed us, and we should be thankful for each blessing. So let’s remember to go back to our source, Jesus, and thank Him in all things today.
I Thessalonians 5:18 In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Psalm 150:6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
