Hosanna Restoration Church

“Give thanks instead of what,” you may be thinking? Well, to be honest, there are a lot of things that we do that if we took the time to give thanks to God instead of just going ahead and doing them, we would be lot better off. One thing I have been trying to practice is catching myself when I am about to say something to my wife or my children in a wrong frame of mind, and thanking God for them and how much they mean to me before I continue. It truly changes what comes out of my mouth. No telling how long it will take me to perfect it, but a start is better than nothing.

Scripture tells us to get a grip on every thought that does not bring glory to God. (My version of casting down every imagination that exalts itself against the glory of God.) Well, I believe that giving thanks to God is one of the greatest weapons we have to help us to accomplish this. In this Psalm, God says that He does not need much of anything that we have to offer Him. He has all the wealth, food, and possessions in the World. What He really desires is our true thanks. He desires that we pay our vows to Him. When we say we want Him to be Lord of our lives, He wants us to present ourselves to Him and allow Him to transform us.

He wants us to trust Him in times of trouble and promises to rescue us if we will. And when He does, He says that we will give Him glory for the great things He has done. You see He wants to do great things for us so that we will give Him glory.

There are many other areas in our lives where thanks to God will change everything. Just imagine how it would change things if when our thoughts were nothing but negative we began to give thanks to God for what is good and wonderful and even for the good plans we have not yet seen. It would renew our minds and refocus our attention. “Yes but that only lasts for so long,” you may say. Well then start over when it wears off.

God never said that everything in our lives would be perfect. He said that He is perfect and He is perfectly willing to hear our prayers and answer us when we call. It takes an effort to keep our focus on His promises when we have the things of this world staring us in the face. That is why He says to think on things above. Think on the things that are above and beyond your circumstances. Think about the victory that God has promised. And of course, give thanks.

Don’t ignore what God promises as though it does not apply to what is happening right now. He says that giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors Him and if we will keep His path He will reveal the salvation of God. (Psalm 50:23) Now there is something to give thanks for. It has been my experience that this works every time. God never fails.