What Does Gratitude Have to Do with God’s Will?

I’ll be honest: I often breeze over this Scripture, and similar ones.

Give thanks in all circumstances. Choose joy when you endure trials… yeah, yeah, yeah. I know the Jesus drill.

But this time, when I read this verse, “for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” almost jumped off the page.

Let’s get real: Have you ever thought about thankfulness as being part of God’s will for your life?

Because according to this verse, it is.

This year, I’ve decided to put thankfulness intentionally on my radar. Everyone says it takes 21 days to form a habit, so I’m going to give myself 9 days cushion. For the entire month of November, I’m going to be using the ThanksLIVING Workbook to make sure my thankfulness and gratitude doesn’t just make me feel better or serve my to-do list.

I want my thankfulness to show others I belong to Christ.

This week, as we memorize this verse and begin focusing on gratitude, I invite you to really reflect on how thankfulness is more than just a suggestion. It’s more than something we do in November. Thankfulness is a part of God’s will for our lives.

God, help us to find gratitude in all circumstances. Help us to see You at work in our lives, and where we can’t see, help us to trust anyway. Open our eyes and hearts to see you moving in a fresh way. Give us the discipline to show thankfulness, even when it doesn’t make sense. Help us realize how our actions, no matter how small we may perceive them to be, can point others to You. You don’t waste anything, God, and we trust you in that. We love you. Amen!