Showing gratitude to God sounds like an easy task, right? But sometimes it’s not. Sometimes we are going through hard times and being grateful is that last thing on our mind. Sometimes, during the season we all share what we are thankful for, the only thing we can focus on are those faces we no longer see around the dinner table.
Let’s face it. With the fast-paced world we live in we have so many things competing for our attention. And more often than not those things distract us. They direct our focus to the bad rather than the good. Let us not grow complacent, friends. Let us have a plan in place that prepares us to show God gratitude in all circumstances.
UNDERSTANDING GRATITUDE
Appreciation and thankfulness – these are two words that can be closely associated with the word: Gratitude. I just love the definition by Lexico – Readiness…Yes – this is what it comes down to.
What is gratitude?
Before knowing how to show gratitude, one must learn what gratitude is. Gratitude goes deeper than simply being thankful. Gratitude can be more closely linked to an emotion rather than an action. It is an emotion of well-being. It is an attitude of grace and gratefulness. Something we show in response to receiving something we have not earned. Gratitude is a response to a gift.
Did you know that showing gratitude makes us healthier? It also strengthens our emotions, helps cope with stress, can help you sleep better, improves productivity, and so much more! So essentially, when you show gratitude you are doing yourself a favor too!
REASONS TO GIVE GOD GRATITUDE
All you have to do is look around you. That’s it. We have so many reasons for thanking God and giving him gratitude! We could come up with every excuse under the sun to not be thankful – especially when our heart’s not in the right place (this is the reason preparation and readiness are key!). But ultimately we have EVERYTHING to be grateful for!
When it doubt, list it out -sister! That’s right! Make a list of things to thank God for! Take a pen out right now (or open your note app on your smartphone cause your techy like that), find something to write on, and write out the first thing you notice that you could be grateful for. Bashful? Let me start –
Breath, electricity, clean water, fingers to type this with, SALVATION, my husband, sweatpants….
I mean…I could keep going. You get the idea. We all have something to be grateful for. We just have to shift our focus, sister. You see what I’m saying? We can get so trapped by dark thoughts. The devil wants to keep us down but you know what?! Ohhh…add this one to your list too: we win!
WAYS TO GIVE GRATITUDE
Oh, girl, there are so many ways of showing gratitude to God! Do you know when you sing a worship song you are praising God and showing him gratitude for your voice? How about when you read the bible? Reading God’s word shows Him gratitude for your sight and for His word. What about taking care of everything He has given us? Yep – taking care of the house, car, kids, or even doing our best at work are all ways to show God gratitude! Here are a few other ways we can go about showing gratitude to god:
THROUGH PRAISE
How do we praise God? Through our words. We sing to him and speak to him and express gratefulness using our voices. This doesn’t have to look any certain way. You don’t have to be in church or other religious settings to praise God. You can do this while driving around from place to place in your car, while out for a walk with your dog, or even while in the shower. Showing God gratitude through praise can be done anywhere!
THROUGH PRAYER
I just love this one! We show God our gratitude through conversation with Him. When we pray to God we are showing that we value our relationship with Him. It shows Him we want to tell Him everything about our days and that what He has to say is important to us. Bonus: not feeling grateful? Pray for gratitude! Double Bonus: Showing gratitude to God through prayer can also be done anywhere!
THROUGH SERVICE
We show gratitude to God by serving Him and serving His people. Showing God gratitude through service can be done in many ways. We serve by helping. The Thanksgiving season is chock full of ways to serve. Soup kitchens anyone? We can volunteer to make dinners for a new mom so she doesn’t have to cook. We can offer to watch someone’s pets so they can go on a much-needed vacation. Another way to serve is to take an exhausted mamma to coffee and have a chat. Bonus: Yep…you got it! You can show gratitude to God by serving and…serving can be done anywhere!
THROUGH WILLINGNESS
In order to begin showing gratitude to God, one must be willing. Don’t feel willing? Pray about it! God will grant you what it is you ask.
I mean…grunt it out, sister, if that’s all you can manage. God can do so much through a willing heart. And a heartfelt moan can be loud and clear in the realms of heaven, I guarantee it! God just wants to know that you want this. You want to be willing. You want to be devoted to Him and you want to desire to spend time with Him. Grunt it out and let him do the rest!
HOW TO CONTINUE SHOWING GOD GRATITUDE
Now that we have the understanding of gratitude, the reasons to show gratitude to God, and the ways to do it – the next step is to set yourself up for success. Starting a gratitude practice will help ensure that you are always prepared and it will be a sure-fire way to create a healthy routine. Remember, gratitude is good for you too!
So what does a gratitude practice look like?
Having a gratitude practice looks different to everyone. I like to think of it as mini-goals for each day, week, or month. It can include things like this: Call my parents more often, keep a journal, spend one day uninterrupted each week with my kids, spend time in prayer, write a letter to your grandparents, etc. One of the best things you can do is study the bible every single day.
You can also embark on a 30 Day Gratitude Challenge to keep you focused on showing gratitude to others (which is a way of showing gratitude to God!).
The most important thing to remember is to stay consistent. Otherwise, a gratitude practice wouldn’t become a healthy habit. Each day make it a priority to pray for faithfulness. Ask God to keep you on track and to continuously bring your mind back to the things you are grateful for.
THE GIFT OF GRATITUDE
Showing gratitude to God is what Thanksgiving is all about. Really, it’s the biblical way of Thanksgiving. The bible is full of moments, scripture, and tribute paid to giving God gratitude. Normal people – just like us – with normal people problems – are all over in the bible finding reason to show gratitude to God.
And, based on the list we compiled above, we have no reason to not be grateful for all He has done for us. The question is this: how are you going to make this Thanksgiving season more about showing gratitude to God?
We love to hear from our readers! Let us know in the comments sections some ways you like to show gratitude to God and some new things you want to start implementing from this post!
