Our prayers are often more self-centered than we realize. As we talk to God,we tend to forget the many blessings that God has given us. Instead,we focus on the things that we want from Him. We should be continually giving thanks to our Lord and Savior.This is one of the most important priorities in the life of the believer. So many of the psalms give thanks to God, and they encourage us to do the same. For example, we read,“It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; to declare Your lovingkindness in the morning and Your faithfulness by night” (Psalm 92:1-2).
Psalm 92:1-5
1 It
is good to give thanks to the LORD,
And to sing praises to
Your name, O Most High;
2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the
morning,
And Your faithfulness every night,
3 On an instrument
of ten strings,
On the lute,
And on the harp,
With
harmonious sound.
4 For You, LORD, have made me glad through Your
work;
I will triumph in the works of Your hands.
5 O
LORD, how great are Your works!
Your thoughts are very deep.
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Leviticus 22:29 – “And when you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the LORD, offer it of your own free will.”
1 Chronicles 23:30 – “to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at evening;”
Psalm 50:23 – Whoever offers praise glorifies Me; And to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God.”
Psalm 105:1-2 – 1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! 2 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!
Psalm 106:1-2 – 1 Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. 2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD? Who can declare all His praise?
Psalm 107:1-2 – 1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
Philippians 4:6-7 – 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
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Giving thanks to God honors Him. -- Why is it so important that we express gratitude to God? Because He deserves the glory! When we bring hearts of thanksgiving to the Lord, we glorify and magnify His name. We act in obedience by giving the credit and praise to the One who should receive it. He is the author of every good thing, and should receive every honor.
Giving thanks to God refocuses our attention. -- Expressing gratitude to the Lord sets our sights on Him. What better way to bring our attention back to God than to think of the many blessings He has given us.What happens when we rise in the morning? We hurry and focus on the world. We should begin each day by setting our minds on eternal things, and realizing the many awesome things about Him prepares us for the day.
Giving thanks to God releases us from anxiety. -- We live in an age of anxiety and worry. In Philippians 4:6-7, Paul urges us not to give in to worry. Instead, we should bring God our requests with thanksgiving.Then, the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds. Giving thanks to God is the best way to be at peace in a time that has so much fear and anxiety.
Giving thanks to God refreshes our relationship with Him. -- Bringing our gratitude to the LORD has a wonderful effect on our personal relationship with Him. As we declare His lovingkindness in the morning and His faithfulness at night, our spirits are rejuvenated. We feel closer and closer to Him, because He draws near to us when we thank Him and praise Him. You can’t reflect on His blessings and continue to feel downhearted.
Giving thanks to God reinforces our faith. -- The Israelites remembered the mighty works of God. They recalled how He crushed the Egyptians at the Red Sea, and how He fed them on manna in the wilderness. When they kept these memories alive, their faith grew stronger. When you remember the things God has done for you, your faith is reinforced.
Giving thanks to God causes our spirit to rejoice. -- What else happens through thanking God? We get more joy out of life. Counting blessings can only make your heart soar. Do you sing when you’re alone? It doesn’t matter how your voice sounds, but only how your heart feels. Give Him thanks and praise by singing songs that express gratitude and worship.
We give thanks by expressing it in words. -- Giving thanks to God is one of the greatest possible ways we could use our time. Thank Him in words, even if all you can think of at first to say is, “Thank you, God.” Then begin saying thank you for every single blessing and fact about God that you can recall.
We give thanks by singing. -- Another way to thank God is by singing. There is music all around us, from the birds and from the streams that make their own melodies. There is power in song, and God made that power so that we could use it to bring Him our thanks and our praise. There are so many kinds of music today, and we can use them to sing with hearts of joy about the wonderful things God has done for us.
We give thanks by living obediently. -- We can however, express our gratitude without ever saying or singing a word. Nothing pleases God more than an obedient life, because that says,“LORD, you have done so much for me, now I will live for You.” Sincere gratitude will come from an obedient heart, and will lead to obedient actions. We can devote our entire lives to thanksgiving by serving Him and following His will every day.
We give thanks through public worship. -- One of the reasons we gather for worship is to express our thanks to God. Most people attend church to receive something, whether it is teaching, fellowship, or just enjoying the choir. God’s primary purpose for fellowship, however, is that we might worship and express adoration and thanksgiving. As we hear the gospel, God is giving us something; when we sing, we are giving something back.
We give thanks by giving generously. -- Finally, we offer our thanksgiving by giving our resources back to God. We owe every breath and everything we own to our LORD and Creator. When we understand this, we give naturally from hearts filled with joy and thanksgiving. He would not spare His only Son, so how can we be anything but generous in returning our gifts to Him?
As we take time to meditate, let us think:
Have we counted our blessings lately? Have we stopped to think of the many things that God has done, not only for us, but for this world? There is not enough time in our lives to begin to list the infinite number of ways our LORD has given of Himself for us.
Giving thanks is something we can do any time and any place.
Let us take a few moments right now to reflect on the greatness of God and the gifts He has given us?
Let us begin each morning with a song of praise and gratitude in our hearts?
If we do that, we are going to feel more joy in our lives! We are going to feel closer to Him and more eager to serve Him.
Let us “Give thanks to God!”
Blessings......
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by Pastor Charles Stanley, LIFE PRINCIPLES NOTES | LP061119 -- In Touch Ministries
Blog author note: from my "Bible Study" folder. When I looked up number "LP061119 - The Life Principle Notes" the message I got was that Life Principles Study notes has been updated. See 30 Life Principles Study Guide - free