Another Thanksgiving Day has come and gone. The leftovers are finished and the scale is showing a little higher number than it did before last Thursday. But one thing that hasn’t changed and should never change is the need to be thankful. If you take a few minutes to think of all the ways in which God has blessed your life, it’s easy to see why we should give Him thanks. Thankfulness should be a part of our daily lives. It should be as natural as breathing. William Arthur Ward (1921-1994), one of America’s most quoted writers of inspirational thoughts, once said, “God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say, ‘thank you?’
In his letter to the church in Colosse, the apostle Paul stressed the importance of thankfulness in the life of a believer. In fact, he mentions thankfulness three times in three verses. After instructing believers to let the peace of Christ rule in their hearts, something to which we are all called, Paul tells us to be thankful (Colossians 3:15). Paul then tells us that we need to let Jesus’ word dwell in us, using the wisdom that He gives to teach and admonish each other. When we do, His words will become second nature to us and will cause our hearts and our mouths to be filled with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs that will naturally be filled with heartfelt thanks to God (Colossians 3:16).
Paul then tells us that whatever we do, whether it is in word or in deed, should be done in the name of Jesus. That doesn’t just mean the prayers we offer, the praise we give, our church attendance, or other “spiritual” things. It means everything that we say and everything that we do, whether spiritual or not, should be done in Jesus’ name. And, most importantly, the things that we say and do in His name should be accompanied by thankfulness, as we give thanks to God our Father through Jesus (Colossians 3:17). Be thankful in all you do, for all that you have, for all that He is, each and every day. The time we are given, we are given by God. We should use it to thank Him.
A Worshiper's Journal 