Importance Of Being Thankful For You Essay

What are you thankful for today?

Everything you are & everything you own comes from God. In 1 Chronicles 29:14 David said “for all things come from you and of your own we have given you.” God created us and we need to be thankful for everything we are & everything He has given to us. Do you have a list of things that you are thankful to God for and that He has blessed you with?

As believers, we should be thankful for a LOT of things: First of all, we should be thankful for God’s grace in our lives. Ephesians 2:8 tells us that grace is God giving us what we need instead of what we deserve. All that God does to for, for you and through you is by the grace of God. Secondly, we should be thankful for God’s plan for our lives. Your life is no accident! God created you with a purpose and a plan. If you’re breathing God has a plan for you! (Jeremiah 29:11). God has prepared a predestined path for you. Even though we often stray off our paths and make bad decisions God promises us in Romans 8:28

that He will take our mistakes & turn them around for our good! All of God’s plans for you will not be easy and pain free. There will be some discipline & some disappointment along the way but when you persevere and stay the course you will come out on the other side…bigger, better, stronger & higher! Thirdly, we should be so thankful for the indescribably beautiful home God has prepared for us in Heaven. 2 Corinthians 5:1 says it is a home that will last forever! We must think of ourselves as eternal. For the believer there is no death. The Bible says that to be absent in the body is to be present with the Lord. The real YOU is not the temporal body you are living in but your spirit which will step out and live eternally (Luke 16:22-23). In eternity, there are just 2 options…Heaven & Hell. Both are very real places. You get to Heaven by receiving Jesus. It is a place created for God’s children. (1 Peter 1:4). The condition you die in will be the condition you spend eternity in. Heaven is a place where you are rewarded for your service and faithfulness. It’s also a place of reassignment. You will be assigned a new task that you will enjoy & will fulfill you. Heaven is not a place where you will be bored & idle, sitting on clouds playing a harp. Heaven will be an exciting place! We will spend eternity on a brand new recreated earth, an earth that is brought back to its original beauty and form. In Heaven we’ll be released from fear, pain, depression, sorrow, tears, stress and disappointment. The Bible says Jesus will wipe away every tear!

How do we say thanks to God? One of the ways we show God our thankfulness is by singing. Throughout history Christians have always got together and sang thanksgiving to the Lord. Psalm 147:7 says to sing to the Lord with thanksgiving. You don’t have to be any good to sing. Your voice is beautiful to God! Praise renews and rejuvenates you! The music is for Jesus & He tells us to make a joyful noise unto Him. Another way we say thanks to God is by serving Him with gladness (Hebrews 12:28). We’re not supposed to be self absorbed, but turn our attention outward and serve others. If you’re not doing something in the kingdom today it’s never too late to start. There is a desperate world out there just waiting for you to lend a hand & open your heart. There is so much joy is helping others. Find some place where you can serve. Serving is a privilege. Our motive for serving should be gratitude. We serve because we “get” to not because we “have” to. It’s not a duty but something we do because we love God. Many people have the attitude that they have what they have because they work hard. Where did they get the ability to work hard? Where did you get your gifts and talents? Where did you get your health?...your opportunities? your mind? your freedom? It’s ALL from God! We all have gifts that He has given us.
So this Thanksgiving, don’t just eat turkey and watch football but be THANKFUL! Acknowledge that you are blessed because of God. Sing to the Lord and get involved in some way to serve God.
Another we show God thanks is by giving. Psalms 50:14 says to give an offering to show thanks to God. The level of our giving really shows the level of our gratitude! John 3:16 says that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son. God gave His best therefore we need to give our best. As you review this past year you may want to ask yourself how you did with your giving. A good rule of thumb is to review, renew & redo. That is, if you didn’t give as much as would have liked you can renew your giving in 2016. If you were satisfied with what you gave then challenge your self to out do this past year and give more. You can give of your time, your talents and your resources. One thing you can be sure of my friend…whatever you give you will can NEVER out give God. Your harvest will always be greater than the seed you planted.

A fourth way you can express your thankfulness to God is telling others what God has done for you.

You are the #1 authority on your life. God wants you to tell your story! He wants you to share with others what He has done in your life. People can argue theology but they can’t argue what God has done in your life! Bring someone to church with you this Thanksgiving, invite someone over to your house for dinner and/or call someone who you haven’t reached out to in a while. 390 years ago the Pilgrims here in America decided to have Thanksgiving. Isn’t it interesting that 3,500 years ago God told his people to have days of Thanksgiving? Since the beginning God’s blessings have always gone hand in hand with thanksgiving. Our country has been blessed because we are a nation of people who understand & realize our blessings come from God. On this very special Jubliee year may we all remember what God has done for us and acknowledge that ALL things come from

Him.

The truth is simple. If you’re not thankful for what you already have it is highly unlikely that your prayers will be answered. We’re to come to God with thanksgiving and praise. If you’re not thankful for what you already have you won’t be thankful for what you get. God knows that grateful people are grateful people. 90% of the world would love your problems. They would love to change places with you. They’re not thinking about which shoes to wear or what new gadget they want for Christmas. They’re wondering where they will sleep tonight and where they will get their next meal. In America, we have SO much to be thankful for! We are greatly blessed! Let’s all remember on this very special 2015 Thanksgiving that God is Lord of ALL in our lives & give him the praise, honor & gratitude He so awesomely deserves!