CALLING: Thankfulness

A 5C devotional on healthy leader development

God has called us to be thankful — “give thanks in everything for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”, 1 Thess 5:18.  Thankfulness is the opposite of a grumbling and complaining spirit. When we grumble, complain and have self pity then we are saying that God does not know what He is doing.  He is not good.  He is not worthy of our trust, so we better take matters in our own hands. This is The Lie from the evil one who wants to break our fellowship with the Lord Himself. Thankfulness is an expression of our faith, our love and our hope in our Lord. Thankfulness is a choice that we should choose on a daily basis. Thankfulness is not always the easy thing - it involves sacrifice - Heb 13:15. Thankfulness is deeply rooted in contentment. Contentment is also not an easy thing. It is an attitude that we must learn and cultivate just like the Apostle Paul- Phil 4:11-13. The word contentment has the meaning of having an inward sufficiency so that we are free from outward circumstances to determine our thankfulness.  Where does this inner sufficiency come from?  Certainly not from ourselves but from our fellowship with Christ (see Philippians 4:11-13).

Thankfulness indicators:

Am I content with who God has made to be? Am I content with what I currently have? Does thankfulness characterize my attitude and my life? Am I thankful to God for where He has me and what He is doing in my life right now? Am I thankful for the people that God has in my life right now? Make the time to offer up all that you are and all that you have to the Lord and give Him thanks. Rub shoulders with thankful people and ask them how they have cultivated this attitude? Read through Philippians and be on the look out for the words - joy, rejoice and find out the reason why Paul emphasizes this trait. Exercise thankfulness today!