The Bible is full of
passages encouraging God’s people to be thankful for the benefits of being
among His family. The reason for this,
as I see it, is that thankfulness produces loving service. Jesus claimed this as His purpose (Mark
10:45) and our gratitude leads us to imitate Him in this way.
Yet I know so many that have
been distracted by Satan to focus mainly on their problems and
frustrations. Their thankfulness and
gratitude have taken a back seat and they are unable to truly consider anything
to be thankful for.
To help you, I would like to
offer you a list of blessings that I think of whenever I get discouraged. I strive to be thankful for them so that I
can keep from falling prey to Satan’s discouraging ways.
I’m Thankful for . . .
My Salvation in Jesus
Christ:
that I am justified
from sin;
that I am being
sanctified through God’s Spirit;
that I am a child of
God.
The Countless Blessings of
life:
for my wife, children
and extended family;
for my health (it can
always be worse);
for a loving spiritual
family - the church;
God’s Constant Care:
He takes care of my
emotional needs;
He takes care of my
spiritual needs;
He sees to my physical
needs.
And He gives me more
than I need in all of these areas.
My Future Home:
that I am a citizen of
Heaven;
that Jesus has
prepared a place for me;
that I am an heir of
God’s promises.
I could go on and on. But I find that when I get to this point in
my list, most of my fears and doubts disappear.
It is truly helpful to follow the advice in a popular hymn that we all
sing: “Count your blessings, name
them one by one; count your many blessings, see what God has done.
And it also helps to
remember a good piece of advice I was given long ago:
“It’s
not happy people who are thankful;
It is
thankful people who are happy.”
Doug
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