3 Reasons to Be Thankful (from “365 Days of Thanking God,” by Daniella Whyte)
God expects thanksgiving from His creation.
Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving…” What kind of God would God be if He kept on blessing us, but He did not expect some praise in return? When we thank God for things He does for us everyday, He appreciates that. You might be saying, ‘Well, I don’t have a job’ or ‘My family is in trouble’ or ‘Someone close to me is seriously ill.’ God understands all of that because He knew where you would be and what you would be doing right now before you were even born. The point is, inspite of everything else that is going on in our lives, if we are alive, we need to be thankful.
People react differently to thankful people.
Not only does God expect thankfulness, but human beings react differently to people who are thankful. If you do something for someone and he or she does not show appreciation to you, will you be more or less eager to do something else for that person the next time around? That’s a question you can answer. Thankfulness is a very simple concept; it is very elementary. Being thankful not only shows good manners, but a simple expression of thankfulness can go a long way in relationships and communication with others. It not only enhances our own lives, but makes other people feel appreciated.
We feel better about ourselves if we exhibit thankfulness.
Not only does God expect our thankfulness and praise and not only do other people react differently to our thankful attitude, but on the inside, we feel better about ourselves if we exhibit a thankful attitude and behaviour. Thankfulness is not just about words because words can be said without meaning, and they often are. Thankfulness is about the condition of our heart because everything that is done from the heart is sincere. Many of us can ask for what we want and oftentimes will get it. But if we are not truly thankful from the heart for what we already have, then we block our opportunities to obtain more.
I believe that contentment in life begins with having a thankful heart. Things change when we exhibit thankfulness and mean it. So, may I encourage you to let yourself be reminded of all the good (and the not so good) things that have happened in your life. As an old hymn says, “Count your blessings, name them one by one.” And you will soon realize that even if you aren’t rich, even if you’re not in the best situation, even if you aren’t popular or powerful, you and I have a lot to be thankful for.
