Be Thankful for Who God Is

Showing gratitude isn’t something we do only for ourselves. We do it primarily because it is what God wants us to do.

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5: 18. ESV).

In my previous articles, we studied the following:

We also discovered how doing the above changes us as people.

People we meet in life and our past are things that are out of our control. But, God can control all these pieces and use them in a way they accomplish God’s purpose in our lives.

If God controls people we meet in life, who we are, and our past, then the most crucial being we need to be grateful for is God.

God has the whole world in God’s hands

I know you’ve heard this phrase thousands of times. You’ve probably even sung it.

Why does this sound so correct?

It’s because you find it in several places in the Bible. First, God is greater than “all,” and no none can snatch us out of God’s hands.

That’s Jesus speaking in John 10: 29.

Second, God has engraved us on the palms of God’s hands. Find it in Isaiah 49: 16.

Take a moment and look at the palms of your hands. It is not easy to change the marks on the palms of your hands. Is it?

God has written your name on the palms of God’s hands. That’s huge.

Third, God upholds you with His righteous hand ( see Isaiah 41: 10).

Who sits on the right hand of God, the Father? It’s Jesus Christ. See Acts 7: 55-56.

Last, but not least, God made the world and everything in it. Also, God made from one man every nation of humankind (Acts 17: 22-28).

[bctt tweet=”We worship a God who is bigger than anyone you’ve ever known, and anything you’ve faced in life! ” username=””]

God makes you a new creation

In Christ, we are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5: 17).

Here’s what it means:

We discover our true identity.
We have clarity about our purpose in life.
We become much healthier: spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically.

God makes a way where there seems to be no way

I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland” (Isaiah 43: 19. ESV.).

No matter what’s on your path, it will never stop you from moving forward because God is walking with you.

A song I love, by Zach Williams, says these words:

If you’ve got pain, He is a pain taker.
If you feel lost, He’s a way maker.
If you need freedom or saving, He’s a prison shaking Savior.
If you’ve got chains, He’s a chain breaker.

That’s who God is for each one of us!

God makes all things work for God’s purpose

Read Romans 8: 28,

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” ESV.

God can turn our failures, mistakes, messed up lives into something more useful to accomplish God’s mission through us.

The guy who wrote the letter to the Romans and many other books we have in the New Testament is an excellent example of that.

His name used to be Saul. But, on his way to Damascus to persecute the Christians, Jesus Christ did what only God can do with our lives.

Instead of killing the Church, knowing that no one can stop God’s work, God transformed Saul, the persecutor of Christ’s Church, into the Apostle Paul.

As a result, Paul would become the first one to take the Gospel to the gentiles, who are people like you and me.

Being grateful for God changes us and here is what happens:

We become more confident.
We are hopeful.
We are resilient.

Your turn now

The first thing you should do is to make the choice to be grateful for everything in life. Also, remember that it’s something you’ve got to do every day. It takes practice to be thankful even when things aren’t going our way. Last, ask God to help you give thanks in all circumstances.

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