Gratitude takes what we have and turns it into enough! I love going into Kirkland’s or Hobby Lobby and reading all the little signs that are written out on various things such as canvas, wood, or even metal. It’s amazing to me how little phrases can make you think and rethink your own attitude. For many years, I have felt the attitude of gratitude was in short supply in America. We have been so blessed that we have allowed that blessing to make us act as if something was owed to us. We seem to think we deserve more and more. No amount of money or things, seem to be enough. It is a vicious circle that traps all of us to some measure.
As I was reading this morning, I came across words penned by the eighteenth-century Puritan preacher, Matthew Henry. While living in London, Matthew Henry was robbed. Here are the words he said after the robbery took place.
“Let me be thankful, first, because I was never robbed before;
Second, because although they took my purse, they did not take my life;
Third, because although they took my all, it was not much;
And fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed.”
Now that is a positive attitude! A truly grateful heart will always yield a positive attitude. In I Thessalonians 5:18, we are admonished, “in everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus to you-ward.” How can we do this in a world where death, crime, sickness, and poverty are all around us? This is not an attitude that comes automatically. I think there must be a progression to achieve this gratitude attitude.
In this passage in I Thessalonians we have several short statements that are dependent on one another.
I Thessalonians 5:16 “Rejoice always;”
I Thessalonians 5:17 “pray without ceasing;”
I Thessalonians 5:18 “in everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus to you-ward.”
To do any of this we must zoom out, and consider the whole picture of our existence. We get so caught up in the little things of life that we fail to understand that in the end, they mean nothing. We fail to rejoice in having a job because we are only thinking about how we will spend the money it provides. And yet, we are instructed over and over in scripture to rejoice.
Philippians 3:1 “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.”
Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.”
Obviously, God intends for His children to live a life that is filled with joy. First, we need to understand that joy is not laughter and frivolity. The source of our joy is the assurances of God’s divine favor and hope of eternal life. Joy is an internal peace that the world does not have. The world bases its joy on circumstances, but we base our joy on Jesus. I like to think of my joy like a silver tray I have in my hutch. If it is protected from the elements it stays shiny and looking new, but when exposed it begins to tarnish. If I want my joy to remain, I must protect it from the elements of this world by feeding it on God’s word. I must commune with him in prayer. Jesus tells his followers in John 15:11 that he has instructed them on the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and eternal life so their joy may remain in them.
John 15:11 “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.”
The way to rejoice evermore is to pray without ceasing. We will rejoice more if we pray more! We should have regular times of prayer. The meaning is not that we should do nothing but stay on our knees in prayer. For many reasons that would be impossible. But, nothing should hinder our prayer. We should keep a mindset of prayer seeking God in every situation.
This leads us to our main verse. Verse 18 tells us to give thanks in everything. If we seek to keep the joy of the Lord in our hearts and pray without ceasing, being thankful will not be a hard thing, but will flow naturally from our heart and mind. This kind of mindset promotes an attitude of gratitude. It is God’s will that we show our gratitude by giving thanks, by understanding, we don’t deserve anything but he gives us everything in his Son.
I firmly believe that if we kept this attitude of “Gratitude takes what we have and makes it enough,” that God would bless us even more.
Ephesians 3:20 “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,”
