The Power of Thanksgiving

Releasing the Positive in Your Life

Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. (NIV)

Colossians 3:17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (NIV)

1Thessalonians 5:16-18 16Be joyful always; 17pray continually; 18give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (NIV)

Ephesians 5:19-2019Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (NIV)

Philippians 4:4-74Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (NIV)

All throughout the Bible we are encouraged to "be thankful" or "give thanks". No matter what we are doing or what we're going through we're told to be thankful. We are even told not to stress or be anxious about ANYTHING, but instead pray and give thanks to God.

Thanksgiving is a powerful exercise. The discipline of gratitude/thankfulness is not an easy one to develop, but its power is hugely underestimated.

There is a reason that we are commanded to be thankful, but first I have to lay a foundation...

Pastor Rick Warren once said that life is like a set of railroad tracks. One track represents the positive, the good, and the blessings in your life; the part of your life that is going well. The other track represents the negative, the hard, that bad, the difficult, the tragic, and the dark experiences in your life; the part of your life that is not going ideally.

Each rail is a constant in your life. There is no time in your life that you don't have something positive to be thankful for and there is no time in your life that you don't have something negative to be working on.