Section #3: Thanksgiving
“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus” (I Thessalonians 5:18).
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6).
“Let us come before Him with thanksgiving and extol Him with music and song. For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods” (Psalm 95:2-3).
These verses are just a few of MANY that instruct us to give thanks to God. It’s an important part of a healthy prayer life. Giving thanks immediately reminds us of our position before the Lord—that we are dependent upon Him for every breath we take.
Thanksgiving is similar to adoration, but the difference is that while adoration focuses on praising God for attributes of his character (who He is), thanksgiving focuses on thanking God for what he has done. Specifically, what he has done in our lives. This is where we get a chance to step back and look at our day through a different lens. Thinking about what we can be grateful for in our day helps us look for God’s goodness in places we may not have seen it at first.
Modern day research is confirming the importance of being thankful people. Brene Brown, a researcher, author, and speaker, has said: “[I] never talk about gratitude and joy separately, for this reason. In 12 years, I've never interviewed a single person who would describe their lives as joyful, who would describe themselves as joyous, who was not actively practicing gratitude.” She has found a direct correlation between the degree to which someone is grateful and the degree to which that person is joyful and happy. The key is in “actively practicing gratitude”—not just feeling grateful, but expressing thanks. That’s the idea behind the thanksgiving section of the binder. As you pray, actually give thanks to God. Say it out loud, and write it down! Create a record for yourself of all the things God has done for you. Oh, and try not to repeat. Ann Voskamp also supports this connection between thanksgiving and joy. In her book “One Thousand Gifts” she tells of her journey through a year when she determined to list 1,000 things to be grateful for. This is an awesome idea. And I tried it. I just couldn’t keep up. So, now I try for just one new thing a day, on average, and write that down in this section of my binder. I thank God for many things every day, but writing one new thing down keeps me looking for things to be thankful for that I hadn’t noticed before. And over the course of three years, I’ll make it to 1,000!
Giving thanks can re-wire your mind and completely change your outlook and your attitude.
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