Thanks Giving

The act of thanksgiving is one that ought to be synonymous with the Christian.

It’s an act that we saw regularly in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the lives of the early church Apostles, and in the practice of the Early Church. The Apostolic writers also made it a point of reference to instruct and exhort believers to give thanks to God.

So what does it mean to give thanks to God, and why is it important?

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (ESV)

In a basic sense, to ‘give thanks’ is to express gratitude; it is to express appreciation for the kindness received.

When we give thanks to God, it means that we are acknowledging the reception of something from God, and that we are also acknowledging the God we have received something from.

First: It keeps our heart on God as our source. This holds through even in difficult, painful and intense moments, Thanksgiving brings stability to our hearts, as it opens up our hearts as though they were windows to catch a glimpse of God.

Second: It is a God ordained alternative to murmuring, complaining and grumbling, which become our default when turns are difficult.

Third: Thanksgiving saves us from pride, it shifts our gaze and focus from ourselves unto God. It’s a testament to our own heart that God, not us, is the great reason for our successes, progress and Joy.

Fourth: Thanksgiving keeps us in the moment. It demands we contemplate on the present. It asks us to find reasons to thank God in the moment.

Oftentimes, we tend to look back (or even forward) to find reasons to thank God, but if we insist on the present, we will find that the present moment has and is also a veritable reason for Thanksgiving.

Fifth: Thanksgiving is the opposite of — and perhaps an antidote to — selfishness and self-centeredness. It causes us to admit that we are recipients of the benevolence and kindness of another.

It helps us recognize that, if not of the actions of another towards us (in this case, God), we would have no other way of getting what he provided. Thanksgiving is another way of saying, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us”.

How do we give thanks to God?

First: with our words. We see this repeatedly with the Psalmist. He made his words into Psalms, hymns, prayers and songs. Our words are proper vehicles of thanksgiving as we address them to God.

Second: when we tell others what God has done for us. Incidentally, this has the effect of causing them to also join us in Thanksgiving, creating a multiplier effect.

Third: by doing good to others. Because we are recipients of God’s kindness, when we show kindness to others, we are, in a sense, thanking God that He has given to us and has positioned us to give unto others.

Fourth: by the giving of our substance. Not because God needs them from us, but because it shows our dependence on Him. We are able to give because we acknowledge Him as our Giver, as Him from whom all everything we have and receive comes from.

Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ

Ephesians 5:20 (ESV)