Welcome to the next post in our series this week! We’re asking the question, “Why should I…” as it relates to different areas in our spiritual lives. So far, we’ve talked about why we should read our Bible daily and why we should pray.
Today we’re asking, “Why should I be grateful?” I don’t know that thankfulness technically qualifies as a spiritual discipline. But I do know that it has an incredible impact on our attitude and how we live each day.
So let’s look at five reasons why we should be grateful.
1. Because it’s God’s will for us.
“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” ~1 Thessalonians 5:18
Maybe we sometimes question what God’s will is for us. In this case, we don’t have to wonder. We’re told that it’s God’s will for us to give thanks in everything.
2. To bring glory to God.
“I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.” ~Psalm 69:30
Everything we have comes from Him. When we recognize that and praise Him for it, we bring Him glory, both personally and when we share that with others.
3. To keep us keenly aware of our blessings.
Isn’t it easy to focus on what’s hard in our lives? Yet we have abundant blessings. Purposely looking for things to be thankful for helps us keep a right perspective. And hopefully, as we recognize our own blessings, we’ll want to be a blessing to others.
4. To cultivate contentment.
It’s hard to be grateful and discontent at the same time! As we take time to be thankful for what we have, we’ll be more satisfied and less tempted to want what we don’t have.
5. To remind us that God is good.
If we’re counting our blessings, as the old hymn says, then we really have no choice but to recognize that God is good.
“The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.” ~Psalm 145:9
Reading Ann Voskamp’s book One Thousand Gifts {Amazon affiliate link} a number of years ago really challenged me in this area of being grateful. I’ve read it through several times since and add to my own written list of gifts nearly every day.
May each one of us live with grateful hearts and thankful spirits today!
- When You Don’t Feel Like Giving Thanks
- Giving Thanks on the Normal Days
- Living Grateful: Making a Daily Choice to Give Thanks
Being grateful also can help us change our mood from a bad one to a good one. 🙂
Yes, it can! It’s all about our perspective and what we choose to focus on.
I love gratitude! We are all gifted in different areas, but recognizing & being thankful feels effortless to me!