Thankfulness

Thankfulness

The word thankfulness or gratitude seems to be popping up everywhere at the moment.  On facebook, my newsfeed is filled with people stating 3 things they are thankful for that day. On Instagram, people are committing to take a picture everyday of something they are grateful for… it’s like a Gratitude revolution is taking place and I absolutely LOVE IT!   Studies have shown that thankfulness improves our physical and emotional health.  Also that holding onto feelings of thankfulness boosts our immune system and increases blood supply to our heart. Wow!

Thankfulness is a prominent bible theme too.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says,  ‘Be joyful always, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”.

Did you catch that? Give thanks in ALL circumstances.  Thankfulness should be a way of life for us, naturally flowing from our hearts and mouths.        

“The whole earth is full of God’s glory. Sky, land and sea, heavy and saturated with God- why do we always forget?”

 Ann Voskamp

By giving thanks continually we are reminded of how much we do have. These days we tend to focus a lot on what we don’t have and begin to feel really dissatisfied with life.  Our consumerist society has a lot to answer for.  We always want to have the latest gadget, a bigger house and of course another camera lens, when most of the time it isn’t possible. When we focus on our blessings rather than our ‘wants’, we are happier. When we start thanking God for things we usually take for granted, our perspective changes… and we realize we could not even exist without the merciful blessings of God!

     Every single molecule, every smile, every taste of sunshine is a gift.

Yes, I would LOVE a bigger house, but im so thankful that I have a house in the first place, so many people are doing it way tougher than me.  You see, Just like that, with one simple thankful thought, my perspective shifts. Thankfulness is powerful… this is why God wants us to give thanks continually. 

We can have a thankful heart towards God even when we do not feel thankful and times are tough. It is hard and may even seem impossible. I know I have failed in this area many times. It is at these times that we need to discipline ourselves to look for the good, instead of complaining and grumbling and feeling like it’s not fair! We need to remember the blessings from last month, from last week, from yesterday and thank God for them! We need to fix our minds on things that are worthy of praise.

We need to say, “God, thankyou that you are in control, and that You are bigger than the problem.”

 “God, thank you that You can bring good out of evil.”

 “God, thankyou that you have great plans for me”

 God, thankyou that You love me”

‘Thankyou for the flowers,  for fresh air, for coffee, for clothes to wear."

We need to look at what we have and be grateful for it.  Continually, in all seasons.  It is life changing and develops our faith.

“I want to see beauty. In the ugly, in the sink, in the suffering, in the daily.” Ann Voskamp

Another thought to put out there. In developing gratitude we need to look for beauty, in others and in the world around us. We just need to walk outside and we are surrounded by God’s beautiful creation.

  Thank Him for the beauty you see. ! I have found that it is in these moments that I feel              connected to the Creator, and He speaks to my soul in a real personal way. I feel blessed and at  peace. I witnessed this thismorning as we were driving down the outlet into town.  Todd saw the Derwent River, shimmering in the sun and said, "Thankyou Lord for this amazing place that we live. What a blessing.”  After that he teared up, it was beautiful to see. His gratitude created a moment. It was just beautiful. Seek out beauty in nature and be thankful.

 I read this awesome quote:

“All beauty is only reflecetion. And whether I am conscious of it or not, it is a glimpse of His face to which I bow down” Ann Voskamp

 What a beautiful thought!!

I don’t want to go through life feeling sad and grumpy about things. I want to live feeling blessed and grateful, and it is through continual thankfulness that I can!!!  We are happier, more positive people when we live constantly thanking God for his blessings, big and small and look for His beauty in creation daily. 

What are you thankful for today? Im thankful that you are reading my blog.

Love Bec.