Thankfulness can be such a powerful thing, but sometimes it’s hard to come by. Discouragement and the trials of life can leave us wondering how in the world we can find any sincere way to be thankful in the midst of the difficulties we are experiencing. But as ironic as it seems, being thankful is powerful and can bring relief during hard times.

As humans, we are only able to see things from a very small perspective. God, however, sees from above which gives Him a grand view. Our little perspective makes it difficult to find those moments of hope when times are hard.  And unfortunately, we have an enemy who does everything he can to turn our focus to all the wrong places.

But because of Jesus in us, we can overcome the wrong perspectives and find the hidden treasures God has for us. We can reach down into the power of a thankful heart.

We can reach down into the power of a thankful heart. Click To Tweet

What does the Bible tell us to be Thankful For?

We have many things we can be thankful for in life, and I’m sure we all have a list in our minds of those things that we always typically think of being grateful for, and rightfully so, for God is very good! We have our homes and families, our jobs, food to eat, all the little and big things God has done to help us in the past, plus so much more.

But there are times when portions of that get all messy. Life is hard, we face difficult relationships, or we find ourselves without employment. We may have areas of pain in our lives that make everything else hard, too. Our children or a spouse may be going down the wrong road. Maybe we are even taking a step in the wrong direction. Life is hard.

But there is a way to be genuinely thankful, even in the most difficult of circumstances and to find it we have to do a little digging into God’s Word. These two verses about being thankful have a hidden treasure for us today, something to hold on to when the going gets tough.

Let’s take a look at a couple of passages.

Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NASB)

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7 (NASB)

In each verse, the word “thanksgiving” has a meaning I never knew about! The root words here have been translated from a Greek word that means thankful for God’s grace. Even more, the word “rejoice” in each verse comes from a Greek root word that paints a picture of God leaning toward us, and it means to delight in His grace and be glad for it.

What Can Thankfulness Do?

What powerful thing does knowing this do for us? It can change our perspective and put our focus in the right place.

• Who is the Person of attention here? God is!

• And what does focusing on God do? It takes the focus off ourselves, off of our problems, off of the trials and burdens that we often carry.

• And as we look up to God, what is the specific object of our focus? The never-ending eternal grace of God.

Looking in a different direction changes the trajectory. When our eyes look up, we can see a whole lot more about our situation. We are also taking the first step to depend on Someone other than ourselves. This tiny shift in focus can do powerful things to change our perspective.

God has so much to give! His hands are reaching out to us. Jesus longs for us to come to Him so He can take us to the heart of God. And that’s where we’ll find grace and truth and the strength we need to keep going.

Thankfulness Doesn’t Depend on our Circumstances

Knowing this is a compelling reminder that thankfulness doesn’t depend on our circumstances. Gratitude is something that comes from within and is brought about by God Himself as He reaches toward us with His love and grace. When we reach back to Him with thanksgiving our hands are clasped – that’s powerful, friends!

That is the kind of God we have! In the midst of trials and troubles, in the good times as well as the bad, His grace is a constant. It’s something that is always there for us.

This is the way to be thankful when all else fails – by focusing on God’s character, His love, and His grace.

Did you know that the two root words behind the words “rejoice” and “thanksgiving” in these verses both mean “grateful?” Grateful is an old English term, which comes from an even older term, “grace-ful” – which means fullness of grace.

A Grace-full Perspective

Can we have that kind of grace-full perspective this Thanksgiving? I think we can!

Can we have a grace-full perspective this Thanksgiving? I think we can! Click To Tweet

Like many other things in life, being thankful is a decision we make. It’s a step of obedience that builds faith. As we are obedient in being thankful for everything – even the hard things of life, we experience freedom. By letting go and giving our trials and burdens to Jesus, by responding in obedience with a genuinely thankful heart, we open up space that once was filled with the wrong thoughts and perspectives. Then the Lord can come in, and He is able to do His work inside us. We experience His grace working out things for His glory and our eternal good – and even the hard things are part of that.

So today, let’s make a decision to be thankful in all things, even the hard ones. Let’s remember that His grace is sufficient, (2 Corinthians 12:9). He is reaching out to us with outstretched arms full of love and grace. Let’s accept it and lift our hands right back to Him in thanksgiving. It’s a powerful thing!

Blessings!

 

 

 

*The Greek root word definitions in this post were sourced from The Discovery Bible HELPS Word-studies, Gary Hill, 2017.  (This is not an affiliate link. I just love this resource and want to share it with you!) You can also find exerpts from The Discovery Bible HELPS Word-studies on many New Testament verses at BibleHub under the Interlinear menu option.

The post How to Have a Grace-full Thanksgiving first appeared at www.journeytoimperfect.com.

*This post may be linked in the following places. Click through to find more hope and encouragement!  Tea And Word Tuesdays / Cheerleaders of Faith /  Coffee for Your Heart / Sitting Among Friends / Moments of Hope / Salt and Light / Heart Encouragement Thursday / Tune in Thursdays / Counting My Blessings / Grace and Truth