A Lifestyle Of Gratitude
Definitions
The Hebrew word for thanks is yāḏâ (ya-da’). It means to give thanks; to praise; or to confess - or acknowledge (either confessing your sins, or confessing your faith).
The root of yāḏâ is yāḏ , which means “open hand” and has connotations of strength and power. So the root of the word thanks in Hebrew is a word that alludes to strength and power, and I think that is a significant point, because, as we will see, God moves in powerful ways when we give Him thanks.
The Greek word for thanks is eucharistia. It means giving of thanks; being grateful; or grateful language (to God, as an act of worship). And it is where we get the word eucharist from - which is another word we use for communion.
There are two main ways that giving thanks is talked about in the bible.
In the Old Testament giving thanks is mainly done in the context of praising God. To give thanks to God and praise His name.
In the New Testament we mostly see Paul giving thanks, or instructing us to give thanks, as a main component of our prayers.
It’s a subtle difference, but in the Old Testament the praise aspect is called out along with giving thanks, and in the New Testament the praise is implied in our prayers.
And something that was a little surprising to me was that Jesus is only recorded as having given thanks in two different situations - and both of them dealt with food.
The first is when he multiplied the loaves and the fishes, and the second is at the last supper. And both times He was giving thanks for food that He was not eating, but that he was giving to others. I just thought that was interesting…
New Testament
I want to start with one of my favorite verses from the New Testament. I’m sure many of us are familiar with it. Philippians 4:6 tells us to pray with gratitude.
Philippians 4:6 (NASB95) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
I think some people have misinterpreted this passage to mean that you should pray for something you want and then thank God as if He has already given you that thing. As if, somehow, you are going to convince God to answer your prayer by assuming to thank Him for giving you what you want.
In some unique circumstances that interpretation may apply, but I think the way it usually comes out is that we think God will give us what we want if we just “believe hard enough.” And there’s an element of disappointment and doubt that comes from unanswered prayers when you pray like that.
But the sentence that directly follows this verse is that God will give you peace that surpasses all understanding. That peace doesn’t come in the form of you getting everything you ask for. That peace comes from you surrendering to God, and remembering how good He has always been to you, and trusting that He will continue to always be good to you - whether He gives you what you want or not.
God doesn’t just want us to pray about the things that make us anxious. He also wants us to remember and pray about the things that He has already done for us that we are thankful for.
Your anxiety is caused by the thing you are focused on in the moment, but your gratitude is to be focused on everything else that God has already done, and that you might be taking for granted or forgetting while your anxiety temporarily takes over your mind.
Gratitude is part of the antidote for anxiety. If you are anxious about anything you are to pray about it, but you are also to have an awareness of the things you are blessed with, and be grateful for them, even as you pray about the things you think you lack.
God is not merely going to take care of the little things you are anxious about - He has already provided for so many things that you are not anxious about. He has already met so many of your other needs, and you need to recognize that rather than focusing on the one or two things that currently seem to have your attention.
Gratitude is not just the antidote for anxiety. It is also the antidote for immoral thinking and immoral behavior. Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:3-4 to replace immoral thoughts and behaviors with gratitude.
Ephesians 5:3-4 (NASB95) But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
How does gratitude replace immorality?
Studies have shown what the Bible has always known.
Or - to put it another way - scholars have taken it upon themselves to re-confirm that what the Bible says is true.
Gratitude has a positive correlation with what they call emotional intelligence. And emotional intelligence is measured by extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Conscientiousness is defined as being responsible, careful, or diligent.
To put it another way - people with a disposition towards gratitude are more likely to be honest, responsible, hard-working, and able to easily get along with others. And all of those things are moral virtues, and they also sound to me like the character traits of good leaders.
Gratitude is also negatively correlated with neuroticism, which means that the less grateful a person is, on average, the more likely they are to experience anxiety, depression, self-doubt, and other negative feelings.
To put it simply, the less thankful you are, the more anxious you will be. So when Paul tells the Phillipians not to be anxious but pray with thanksgiving - he is giving them the exact formula for combating their anxiety. It’s very hard for you to be grateful and anxious at the same time. Those two emotions are opposed to each other. So, absolutely pray about it, but immediately change your attitude to gratitude as well.
I think Paul summarizes his whole teaching about thankfulness in these couple sentences in his letter to the Collosians.
He says always be thankful. Sing - don’t just pray - sing to God with thankful hearts.
Colossians 3:15c-17 (NASB95) And always be thankful. Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Don’t just change your mind to be thankful for a minute or two while you pray for something, but change your heart to always be thankful - no matter what. Don’t just wait for the feeling of thankfulness to hit you every now and then. Don’t just set a reminder on your phone to “be thankful” - although that may be worth doing too. But make gratitude a foundational part of your character - make it a fundamental part of who you are.
And where does your gratitude come from, and where is it directed to? Well, Jesus, of course!
Don’t just have the faith of a child, but have the heart of a child. Don’t just walk with God - put a skip in your step, and a song in your heart. Sing to God in praise and gratitude, from your heart, ALWAYS.
If you do that, everything you say, and everything you do, will show that you are a representative of the Lord Jesus.
[ask everyone to stand up…]
I want you all to take a minute and do a quick visualization exercise with me.
Close your eyes and picture yourself as a child. Not physically, but spiritually. Picture yourself, in your exact body, as you are right now, but you’re skipping down a road, or through a field, or wherever you want to be. You’re carefree - humming a tune, or singing a song, or repeating a rhyme. Your family can be there with you, and they’re all doing the same thing. You are completely without a care in the world. You have no memory of any past hurts or mistakes. You have no plan for any future things. You are just completely absorbed in the moment, and you have nothing but joy exuding from you in every way. Skipping along. And skipping right along with you is Jesus. Holding your hand. Giving you the biggest warmest smile. And just by His very presence filling you with peace, and security, and joy.
…doesn’t that make you feel grateful? Wouldn’t it be absolutely wonderful to be that way in every moment of every day? That is the person that God is calling you to be. Unconditionally. No matter what you’re going through, or what you think you lack, that’s how God wants you to be, right now.
So, if that’s not how you already are, what’s stopping you from making that be who you are? No one’s stopping you. If anyone is, it’s you. And Jesus is right there, with His hand out, saying come on! Let’s enjoy today together! And all you have to do is take His hand and say Yes, Lord. Thank You Lord!
As we move forward please stay in that frame of childlike joy with Jesus holding your hand and looking lovingly into your eyes, and you humming that tune of gratitude back to Him.
Old Testament
And with that in mind. Let’s take a look at what the Old Testament says about gratitude.
Thanks and Praise
If you look up the phrase “give thanks” in the Psalms, you will see that it occurs about 50 times - depending on your translation. And almost every time, in the same verse, in the same breath, it is combined with an act of praise.
Psalm 7:17 (NASB95) I will give thanks to the LORD according to His righteousness And will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.
Psalm 18:49 (NASB95) Therefore I will give thanks to You among the nations, O LORD, And I will sing praises to Your name.
Psalm 30:4 (NASB95) Sing praise to the LORD, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His holy name.
Psalm 57:9 (NASB95) I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations.
Psalm 79:13 (NASB95) So we Your people and the sheep of Your pasture Will give thanks to You forever; To all generations we will tell of Your praise.
And there are many more…
That tells me that thanking and praising God go hand-in-hand. They are closely related, but not the same.
You can thank God for all that He gives you, and all that He does for you, without necessarily praising Him.
Thank You God, for the food, the toys, my health, my good fortune, etc… And you’re thanking Him, but there’s an element of praise that’s lacking.
And you can praise God without necessarily thanking Him.
God You are good, You are loving, You are merciful, You are gracious… And you’re praising Him, but there’s no gratitude expressed in it.
But, when you put them together, something powerful seems to happen.
God thank You for loving us because You are love, and You created us to have a loving relationship together with You. Jesus you love us so much that you lowered yourself down from your heavenly throne to walk among us as a humble man, serving rather than being served. We thank you Lord for doing on our behalf what we could not do when you overcame death and sin through your perfect life and sacrificial death on the cross. We thank you and praise you Lord for showing us the way to love sacrificially, and for making us your own.
Thank you God for providing for my family and me because You created all things, and You are so generous that you give good things to those who love you, and even to those who have turned away from you. You give us our daily bread God, and you feed us with your word. And if all else failed you would still find a way to provide for us Lord, just like you provided mana to Israel in the wilderness.
Thank You Jesus for our good health because you are the great physician, and you knit us together according to your perfect design, and you have blessed us with bodies that You have called temples of Your own Spirit.
Thank You Holy Spirit for helping us because You teach us all good things, and you give us words of wisdom to speak when the moment requires them, and you strengthen our faith so that we can endure many trials, and you remind us continually of the greatness and glory and majesty of God.
Do you feel the difference when you combine praise with thanksgiving? It’s more complete, and, to me, seems more heartfelt.
Psalms of Thanksgiving
There are several psalms of thanksgiving throughout the Bible, not just in the book of Psalms.
There’s a psalm of thanksgiving in 1 Chronicles 16:8-36 that David wrote as he had the Levites bring the Arc of God to the place that he had built for it. Right before they began to sing this psalm David appointed worship leaders to minister before the arc, and chief among them was Asaph, whose name we see appear again and again throughout the rest of the Old Testament.
The psalm is a bit long, so in the interest of time I’ll just read the beginning and the end of it.
Psalm of Thanksgiving
1 Chronicles 16:8-10 (NASB95) Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples. Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonders. Glory in His holy name; Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad.
David then goes on to praise God for His faithfulness in keeping the promises that He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And David praises God for the wonders and miracles He has done; for His strength and sovereignty and protection - and even for His holiness. He says that all the heavens and the earth, and even the animals and the plants should sing for joy to the Lord.
And the psalm ends with…
1 Chronicles 16:34-36 (NASB95) O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Then say, “Save us, O God of our salvation, And gather us and deliver us from the nations, To give thanks to Your holy name, And glory in Your praise.” Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, From everlasting even to everlasting. Then all the people said, “Amen,” and praised the Lord.
I think the great part of this psalm is that it is a reminder to keep being thankful of all the things that God has done. Don’t just thank God once and then forget what He did.
If you can’t think of something to thank and praise God for then you are not looking at the world around you correctly. If you can’t think of anything to be thankful for, then that’s a sign that you are taking everything for granted.
What if the sun refused to shine? What if water stopped flowing? What if the wind never blew again? What if your heart never felt joy again? Not to even speak of the practical everyday things like having food to eat, and clothes to wear, and a roof to sleep under, and a bed to sleep in.
So, I want all of you to start thinking, right now, about what you are thankful to God for. And I want you to find an element of praise to mix with that gratitude. Not just thank you God for the food, but God thank you for being the creator of all things, and for providing for all of your creation, and for your generosity in providing even for those who have turned away from you. I see your greatness, and power, and glory in the way you provide for me, and for all of your creation.
And that’s a heart attitude that we all need to develop. Not just thanking God for stuff - or for getting the thing that we wanted. But thanking God for being The Provider for all of His creation. For being the source of all good things, and for sharing all those good things with us.
Not just thanking God for healing us. But thanking God for being The Healer of all of His creation. For being the architect of life and for ordering all things, spiritual and physical, in such a way that we can see His greatness, and wisdom, and love in and through them.
Remembering is a form of praise and worship. God puts a high importance on remembering what He has done. Passover is based on a command to remember. Communion is based on a command to remember…
Psalm 136
Everyone please turn to Psalm 136. In my Bible it’s on page 551.
This psalm is a psalm of thanksgiving. It’s a bit repetitive - like a chant, and I get the feeling that this could have been a battle chant, or perhaps a marching cadence, but we will get to that in a little bit.
Psalm 136:1-3 (NASB95) Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. ...
The repeated phrase is “His lovingkindness is everlasting.”
Lovingkindness is defined as God’s unwavering, unconditional, redemptive, and concrete love towards His people, and even towards those who do not deserve it.
The lines of this psalm alternate between thanking God for something specific, and acknowledging His everlasting lovingkindness.
In a way this psalm is one of counting blessings, but it continually returns to the greatest blessing, which is God’s lovingkindness.
[Ask everyone to stand up…]
I want us to try something together. Let’s try making our own psalm of this type. I’ll get us started, and then if you feel led, go ahead and shout out a short thank you to God. Don’t worry about speaking over each other - just say it to God. And we can all repeat the refrain. After each thanks let’s all repeat “Jesus loves and died for us.”
Let’s all do this together. Everyone say a short thank you to God - as you feel led, and then let’s all repeat “Jesus loves and dies for us.”
I’ll start: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
And then we all say: Jesus loves and died for us.
Give thanks to God, who provides for our needs; Jesus loves and died for us.
Give thanks to Christ, who heals our wounds; Jesus loves and died for us. …
[praying that this demonstrates the impact of corporate thanksgiving and prayer…]
[…transition to showing how Israel might have done something like this in the story in 2 Chronicles 20…]
Did everyone feel the power of us thanking and praising God together like this?
I have a story to share with you from 2 Chronicles 20, where I think Israel might have done something very similar to this in a very dire situation.
And I really love this story because I’ve come to see the Old Testament in a different way than I used to.
The New Testament tells us that we will face spiritual battles, and that we have spiritual enemies, and that we are spiritually victorious in Christ. And that’s all true. But it can sometimes feel like there’s not a lot of practical details about how exactly to fight those spiritual battles other than just praying and trusting God.
Now, don’t get me wrong. Praying and trusting God are exactly the things we need to do, but sometimes you just want more details, or something more to lean into.
And I’ve come to see the Old Testament as exactly that. All the physical battles, and stories, and festivals, and laws in the Old Testament are exact parallels to our spiritual life now. Every time Israel faced a physical battle in the Old Testament they either trusted God and saw Him do miraculous things, or they did not trust God, which resulted in Him not helping them.
And I truly believe that all of those stories have parallel, spiritual implications for us now. Every time we go up against a physical or spiritual battle, or a struggle, or even a simple problem - if we are trusting God to get us through it, we will see Him do miraculous things. But if we are only relying on ourselves - or the people around us - to get us through it then we will often be overcome, or disappointed, or frustrated.
So I am digging into this Old Testament story with you not just because it’s a wonderful example of the power of thanksgiving and prayer, but because I see it as absolutely practical and relevant to us, now, every day.
So I want you to reflect on the spiritual implications of the lessons this story teaches, and how they apply to your life - and to our lives together.
2 Chronicles 20
2 Chronicles 20 tells the story of three armies that joined together to attack Judah when Jehoshaphat was king.
The story starts out telling how afraid Jehoshaphat was when he heard that the armies of Ammon, Moab and Seir were coming to attack Judah.
And Jehoshaphat’s response was exactly what our response to any threats should be; he turned his attention to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
Then he and the whole assembly of Judah - even children and infants - went to the temple and prayed to God. His prayer started out praising God, and remembering all that God had already done, and the promises that God had made to those who cry out to Him.
And Jehoshaphat didn’t ask God for any specific outcome - only that God would judge His enemies. Instead, Jehoshaphat admitted that he and the people of Judah were powerless before the coming enemy, and that they did not know what to do. He said only that their eyes were on God.
So, Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah were faced with an overwhelming threat. And in response to that threat, their immediate response was to pray and fast. That tells you a lot about the state of Judah in those times. They did not form a war council and begin planning their defenses. They did not begin conscripting young men into the army. They did not start making treaties with their powerful allies. They immediately, and whole-heartedly, turned to God in prayer and fasting, and admitted that they did not know what to do - other than to focus on God.
Remember that visualization we did earlier - we are to be spiritual children completely present in the joy of the presence of our savior? What do children do when they’re threatened? They don’t know what to do. They don’t even know what to ask for. They just run to mom and dad for help and trust them to take care of the threat. That’s what Judah was like. They were in a state of childlike dependence on God.
And what was God’s response?
He answered Jehoshaphat through one of the prophets in the assembly. This prophet was one of the descendants of Asaph - the priest that King David appointed as worship leader back in the psalm of thanksgiving that we read from 1 Chronicles 16.
And God told Judah not to fear or be dismayed because the battle was not theirs, but it belonged to God. God didn’t just say that the battle was against Him, or that He would help them fight it. He said that He fully owned the battle; that He would take care of it.
God told Jehoshaphat exactly where the enemy would be, and when. He told him to go out to meet the enemy, but that Judah would not have to fight; all they would have to do is watch as God saved them from this great and powerful threat.
And the people of Judah bowed down and worshiped God, and the Levites stood up and praised God with a very loud voice.
So what does all this have to do with thanksgiving?
It’s in the climax of the story…
The next day as the people of Judah were doing what God told them to do, going out to the battlefield, King Jehoshaphat reminded the people to trust God and they will succeed.
Then, and this is my favorite part, he sent the worship team out in front of the army.
So Judah, a people so afraid that they didn’t even know what to pray for, other than to remember what God had already promised and done, put themselves in God’s hands, went out onto the battlefield, and sent the worship team out to the front line.
And the worship team told the people to “give thanks to Lord, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.” That’s the repeated part of Psalm 136 - the Psalm of Thanksgiving. There may be slight variations in the English translation, but in Hebrew these are the exact same words
Yāḏâ Yᵊhōvâ kî ḥeseḏ ʿôlām
kî ṭôḇ (he is good), ‘ĕlōhîm ‘ĕlōhîm (God of gods), ‘āḏôn ‘āḏôn (lord of lords)
That’s why I think that Psalm 136 is a battle chant.
And when the people of Judah started singing and praising, God started to move. And God started turning the enemy armies against each other. And all Judah had to do was watch as God caused the enemy to completely and utterly destroy each other - so that not a single survivor was left.
Is that a model for us to emulate in our relationship with God, or what?!
And after the battle was done, the people of Judah went out to collect the spoils, they found so much that it took them three days to collect it all, and it was more than they could carry. And on the fourth day they gathered together in a valley and blessed the Lord and named the valley the Valley of Beracah, which means blessing.
And the word that is translated as blessed in “they blessed the Lord” means to kneel down, to praise, or to congratulate. So they didn’t just take the stuff and scatter back to their homes. They took time to praise and honor and give glory to God for His victory.
And there’s something else here that’s easy to gloss over. They blessed the Lord in the valley. And valleys are usually not places you want to be in the Bible. Remember the valley of the shadow of death? Valleys are usually associated with lowliness, and vulnerability. And we see Judah - completely vulnerable, and utterly low - praising God and blessing Him in the valley. Even naming the valley Blessed.
And every man of Judah returned with Jehoshaphat to Jerusalem with joy. Praising God with musical instruments. And after that all the kingdoms of the land dreaded God, and God gave Judah peace and rest on all sides. Just like we will one day return into the joy of God’s everlasting presence.
And I love this story as a thanksgiving story because it shows us what it really means to be thankful.
Being thankful isn’t just acknowledging that you got something you wanted. Being thankful is remembering everything that God has already done for you, and everything that He has promised to do for you, and trusting Him to do what is best for you - no matter what.
Being thankful, when it comes down to it, is how we express our faith to God. And in that expression God is happy to take care of us, and give us every good thing, and do every good thing for us. And as He does all these things we just become more and more thankful until, at some point, you don’t even ask Him for anything. You just say God, I remember everything you have done, and promised to do, and Lord I am in your hands. I don’t know what else to do except focus my attention on you.
Gratitude is to be our battle attitude.
And I can’t think of a better way to close than with scripture itself.
Rev 7:9-12 (NASB95)After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying,
“Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying,
“Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”