Life Through the Lens of Thankfulness
I recently heard someone say “I’ve got to call…” and thought about how many names could fill in for their loved one’s name.
A lot of us have people in our life who we feel a responsibility to contact. It gives us a feeling that we shouldn’t let too many days go by without reaching out, turning it into more of a need-to situation rather than a want-to.
When I heard “I’ve got to call…” I immediately thought about what it would be like if we changed it to “I get to call…” because it truly is a blessing to be able to reach out to those we love.
We are instructed in the Bible to have a thankful attitude. In fact, 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us to “Be thankful in everything, in all circumstances.” That one verse sums it all up. There are many other verses about gratitude in the Bible, but 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us all we need to know.
Everything means exactly what we think it means, but God helped us by adding “in all circumstances.”
When I think about the circumstances in my own life, it doesn’t take long for me to find something to complain about. After all, everything is not as I want it to be. If I could make changes, I absolutely would. Wouldn’t we all?
But God has clearly told us to look at every single thing in our life, every circumstance we find ourselves in, and then to truly be thankful.
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How is this possible? Some circumstances are painful. Some really do need to be changed. I don’t think God is asking us to simply accept the areas in our lives where there is pain and unhappiness. No, I still believe in Philippians 4:6 where we’re told to not be anxious but to make our requests known to God.
When we read that verse in its entirety, it’s impossible to miss God telling us to pray and plead with thanksgiving.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
Philippians 4:6 NIV
God knows we have areas in our lives where we need Him to intervene, but He also knows we need to develop an attitude of gratitude.
We need to be thankful for one very important reason, because of who God is. We need to have gratitude in our heart because we are told in 1 Chronicles 16:34 to “”Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.”
No matter what our lives look like, that truth remains constant. God is good. His love toward us is a forever love. He uses that love for our good. After all, He sent His Son to us. If we have accepted His gift of salvation, then we can be thankful because we know God through His Son, Jesus Christ.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16 NIV
This promise is something I believe we lose sight of as we are dealing with the problems we have in our everyday life.
Even though our salvation is the most important gift we will ever receive, God, in His goodness, has given us even more than the gift of eternal life. He made us a promise for the here and now in Philippians 4:19 when he shared that “…God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
It’s all about our attitude.
That person who said, “I’ve got to call…” would do well to remember they actually get to call their loved one. After all, the day will come when that phone call will not be able to take place.
A small shift in our attitude can be all it takes to remind us of the importance of being grateful for every single thing in our lives.
Seeing the bigger picture makes it almost impossible to complain.
If we have accepted Jesus as our Savior, we literally have been given eternal life in Heaven. It truly does not get any better than that. Then we have been promised the help of Almighty God with everything that we will face as we live out this life He has blessed us with.
When I keep my focus on all God has done for me, I’m aware of how selfish I sound every time I complain. After all, how can I stop praising the Lord for everything He has already given me and all that He promises me in my future?
As I pick up the phone to reach out to someone I’ve “got to” call, I’m grateful that there’s still someone at the other end of the line who will pick up, whose voice I will get to hear.
I’m aware of others whose voices I would absolutely love to hear just one more time, making me grateful for those I can talk to now.
May that sense of thankfulness flood every area of my life. May the gratitude in my heart flow out of me in my words and actions. I believe that is yet another gift of God as He reminds me frequently in the Bible to simply give thanks in everything.
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