Thankfulness Part 2

Well, hello Joy fam!

Can you believe how fast the time has been flying by? It must have flown especially fast the last couple of months because it’s taken a while for me to get this post published. ;)

Last time, I talked about thankfulness and negative thoughts. Today, I want to give you two more reasons why you should choose thankfulness. As you read this, I want you to know that you’re not alone in the struggle. Know that I’m fighting this fight every day alongside you. Know that God is gracious to give you strength when you need it.

Here we go…

Reason #2 - When you are thankful, you begin to express it to those around you.

For some reason, high school and college-aged people are good at complaining. We are good at seeing the glass half-empty. We are experts at thinking about ourselves. We look down at our phones, taking selfies, scrolling through social media, not really caring to notice the people in our lives.

In contrast, thankfulness creates a spirit that is others-focused. It causes our hearts to see the glass that God causes to overflow. Because of this we can’t help but say, “thank you”. Thankfulness influences us to vocalize the things we’re thankful for instead of the things we hate or are annoyed by. When we have thankful hearts, we believe that the people in our lives are placed there by God for a reason. Family members often get on our nerves, so sometimes it’s hard to realize that they truly are blessings.

Even if we don’t express it, deep inside, there are things that we appreciate about our family members. Picture those qualities in your mind. Imagine how you might express your thankfulness to them.

Here’s a challenge: think of one good quality you see in your sibling, parent, or roommate. Then, express your thankfulness to them for that quality. Try to do this once every day this month. I promise that over time, you will begin to see him or her as a gift. Thankfulness helps to reset our focus on what is important.

Reason #3- Thankfulness brings joy and perspective to hard situations.

Colossians 3:15-17 says, ”And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him”.

This passage is saying that in whatever we do, we should do it with gratitude in our hearts. It’s a command to be thankful to God in every situation, not just the good ones, not just the easy ones, but all situations. I think the reason it’s difficult to be thankful in hard times is that we start to feel sorry for ourselves. We focus on how horrible our situation is and we forget the good things in our lives.

Since God tells us to be thankful “in whatever we do”, we should practice being thankful when we don’t feel like it. The times when it’s the hardest to be thankful are the times when we need it the most. I’m not saying that you should ignore the difficulty you’re facing, stuffing your feelings down, saying that “everything’s fine”. No, that’s not my point. My point is that even in the hardest times, we can still see God at work and be thankful for that. Even if we can’t see Him at work, we can choose to thank Him for what He has done and know that He will continue to work.

Sometimes our situations are less than ideal; we mess up, we hurt people, we forget things, or we make bad decisions. In those times, God has a lesson to teach us.

But sometimes it’s not our fault. Sometimes everything goes wrong and it didn’t have anything to do with our decisions. Even when those times come, God is shaping us to be more like His Son. He’s making new and beautiful things, even though it is painful at the moment. When we look back, the hardest things we encounter in our lives are often the times we grow the most. This is truly a beautiful thing, and something we can be thankful for.

We, young people, need to practice thankfulness daily. Not only does thankfulness bring joy and promote servant-heartedness, but it also helps us have a new perspective of difficulty. God wants to give you the joy and perspective that comes from thankfulness. We’ve all looked for joy and happiness in the things of this world. It’s not working. Why don’t you try looking for happiness God’s way?

I hope this post encourages you to choose thankfulness. I pray that this month, you will see the fruit of God at work in you through the power of thankfulness.

Love, Kaela Joy