Thoughts of Gratefulness

I have recently completed a series of messages during the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving with the aim of cultivating an attitude of gratefulness and thankfulness.

For many of us we may find it difficult to have this attitude when all of our life is swirling around us and seems to be out of control. We are troubled, confused, unsure of where everything is headed, feeling that we have been jilted and maybe even bitter.

We seem to have forgotten that this is not new. Even in the beginning of time, shortly after Creation, Adam and Eve had a hard time being grateful. Remember in the Genesis 1 account of Creation, we read over and over that when God had finished His work for that day, He saw that what He had made was good. And yet, in Genesis 3, when Adam and Eve are confronted by Satan, he asks them the question, "Is it good?" He plants the seed of ungratefulness in their minds and they begin to question whether God is really good...what has He done for them lately...does He really have their best interest in mind. They forgot that God creates and says "It is good!" and that Satan destroys by saying, "Is it good?"

"Satan's sin becomes the first sin of all humanity: the sin of ingratitude. Adam and Eve are simply, painfully ungrateful for what God gave. Our fall was, has always been, and always will be, that we aren't satisfied in God and what He gives. We hunger for something more, something other." - Ann Voskamp - "One Thousand Gifts"

There it is...we fall into the same trap. We forget all that the Scriptures tell us about being grateful.

"But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness." - Romans 6:17-18

"Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our 'God is a consuming fire.'" - Hebrews 12:28

"But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." - 1 Corinthians 15:57

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" - 2 Corinthians 9:15

We need to be reminded that the basis of our gratefulness is the gracious gift of God.

It is interesting that the words GRACE, THANKS and JOY are connected in the Greek language. All three come from a similar root word.

The gracious gifts of God cause us to be thankful and we are in turn filled with joy.

Maybe you have found this to be true, that a LACK OF GRATITUDE = LACK OF JOY and that a LACK OF JOY = LACK OF GRATITUDE.

So to fight falling into this trap of ungratefulness and a joyless life, there are three things that we should begin to do:

1) Find something to be thankful for - (There is always something there if we look for it)
2) Thank God for it - (He is the One Who gave it)
3) Write it down - (We need to remember it)

Let's begin thinking thoughts of gratefulness.


"Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved."