This will take you back some – remember “Thank You” notes. You know the ones you sat down and wrote to your friends and family after a big birthday, Christmas, graduation or wedding? Those are the ones. I still send them and more importantly I love getting them.
Now let me ask, did you send them because your parents made you or were you really wanting to tell someone thank you for what they had done?
Have you ever been around a parent who had to coax their child into saying thank you? If the child is small, you appreciate that the parents are raising their children to have good manners, but if the child is a teen and they have to be told to say thank you, the meaning is lost.
“And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the Lord, offer it at your own will.” Leviticus 22:29
A thanksgiving offering was a sign of worship in the Old Testament and it was an offering of unleaven bread and meat. But it was offered by free will. We don’t tell God thank you out of obligation but out of love.
We should always be mindful of the many things He has done for us; the sunrise, the air we breathe, the love of our spouse and children, His love for us in sending His Son to die. So many things to be grateful for – make it a sacrifice of thanksgiving – stop what you are doing, block out the distractions and give thanks.
“Each one of you is part of the body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace. So let the peace that comes from Christ control your thoughts. And be grateful. 16 Let the message about Christ completely fill your lives, while you use all your wisdom to teach and instruct each other. With thankful hearts, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.” Colossians 3:15-16 ERV
This verse tells us to let our lives be filled completely with what Christ in His love has done for us, when we do we will also be filled with peace and then we will eagerly desire to come to God with thankful hearts.
There’s an old hymn, Count Your Blessings, and it goes like this: Count your blessings, name them one by one. Count your blessings, see what God has done. Count your blessings, name them one by one. And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
Start counting…