As we approach God to ask for new blessings, we should never forget to offer thanks for the blessings He has already given. We must be just as quick in returning thanks as we are in requesting help; but many times, we are not. We are quick to ask for help, but we are slow in giving thanks.
Sometimes, giving thanks can be difficult, because we feel like we have been dealt a bad hand in life or things have happened to us that we do not fully understand. But here is something we need to remember: "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:18). This verse does not say to give thanks in some things, or in what you believe are good things; it says to give thanks in all things.
Now, it is easy for me to give thanks when something wonderful happens to me. However, when something bad takes place, I think, "I won't give thanks for that." I don't know that we will ever fully comprehend what was good or bad in our lives until much later. I would even suggest that what you think is a bad thing today might in turn be a good thing for tomorrow or down the road. And what you have thought of as a good thing may, in time, turn out to be a bad thing. I believe that when you look back years from now, you will be able to say that the Lord knew what He was doing.
Copyright © 2011 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Bible text from the New King James Version is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214-1000
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