Creating a Heart of Gratitude
One of the most powerful emotions is gratitude. If we can find ways to be thankful and grateful throughout our life, we will find the power and emotional strength to walk through some of life’s hardest seasons.
It's not always easy to find ways to be thankful and grateful. But, one of the things Scripture teaches us throughout the Psalms is that there is always something to be grateful for.
The Psalms teach us various songs and poems for every season of our life. But more than that, they also teach us how to cultivate a heart of gratitude and worship towards God.
We belong to a God who loves us and cares deeply for us. God’s love and goodness will never end. Psalm 100:5 praises God for these things:
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Through Psalms like this, we can begin to build a habit of gratitude towards God and all that He has done. We can thank God for what He has done in our lives, what He is currently doing, and what He will do in the future as we follow after Him.
Because God is always good, loving, and faithful, there is always something we can be grateful for—even in the midst of difficult seasons of life.
Take a few moments today to strengthen the habit of gratitude in your life.
First, begin by thanking God for who He is: that He is good, faithful, and loving towards you.
Next, thank God for all that He has done in your life. Thank Him for the good things in your life, and that He has walked with you through the hard times.
Lastly, thank God for all He will continue to do in your life.
What’s the Point?
There once lived a king whose experience exploring and grappling with life’s perplexities was recorded in the book of Ecclesiastes.
What’s interesting is that this king—likely King Solomon—reigned in Israel during some of the best years in its history. From the world’s standards, he had more power, prestige, and wealth than any other person before him. Yet, still, he summarized his luxuries with one depressing word: Meaningless!
“Everything is meaningless!” (Ecclesiastes 1:2) “Everything is wearisome beyond description.” (Ecclesiastes 1:8) “Nothing under the sun is truly new.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9) “I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless—like chasing the wind.” (Ecclesiastes 1:14)
Though written thousands of years ago, this bleak analysis still resonates with our own restless yearning for more. We want more than meaningless stuff. We want more than surface-level connections and ambitions. We want more than a seemingly...