How To Keep A Thankful Heart (Part 2)

This week, there are a few more things that I would like to share about being thankful... after all, one can never be TOO thankful, right?!

In Ephesians 5:20 the Word says, "Give thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Just look at how often we should give thanks - "ALWAYS." Now take a minute to think about what always means. When you got dressed this morning, did you think to give thanks for your shoes?  How many times have you complained about not having "anything to wear" while staring at a closet full of choices? Friends, stop grumbling and give thanks for all things always, so we can create the right environment to keep a thankful heart.

Daniel 6:2-3 tell us, "And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm." Now what do you think made Daniel have such an excellent spirit? Daniel had built the right environment of thankfulness around him and that environment carried an excellent spirit.

We know that people plotted against Daniel; the King went so far as to make a firm decree that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions. Despite this decree, Daniel kept doing what an excellent spirit does - he continued to give thanks. The Bible tells us that Daniel opened his window just as he had always done, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God. And we know that Daniel ended up getting cast into the den of lions... but we also know who prevailed in that situation! If we keep building the right type of environment through being thankful, it won’t matter what the test is - we will be in the best place to overcome it!

Being thankful always must be a habit. Of course, when we first set our minds on doing this, we might not be as good at it as Daniel. However, if we can consciously think about it all the time, we'll find that the more we think about it, the more we will do it and we will eventually get to a point where it’s second nature, we'll simply give thanks always without even thinking about it.

Psalms 34:1 says "I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth." We must bless the Lord continually. We must also make a consciously decision to give thanks in everything, so that we can generate this environment of thanksgiving and our God that delivered Daniel, can (and will) also deliver us, because we have learned how to keep a thankful heart! 

With all that said let the church say amen…and AMEN!