In Everything Give Thanks

Life can be daunting at times. We get up each morning with goals in mind, milestones to reach, and desires to be met. The pressures of life can be quite overwhelming. From family life, to career life, to social life. Trying to meet the different demands of life and falling short can be quite depressing to say the least. How do we keep our heads held up when life wants to keep them hanging down, with all its many loads? How do we move through life with fire and a flame burning bright?

The answer – GRATITUDE

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

There has been a growing demand for my time recently. I’ve been busy to the point where I have been dreading the days ahead – which isn’t good. Being annoyed about things that I once prayed and asked God for. Dragging my legs regarding certain opportunities that I believe God has divinely orchestrated for His name to be made known. This is a spirit of complacency and it is a killer.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who has subconsciously fallen victim to not being fully appreciative of life’s many blessings. For the mothers out there who get annoyed by the amount of field trips they have to prepare for or the frequent bake sales at school – yet you had sleepless nights in the past thinking about that daughter you would have in the future and getting her ready for school.  For those lovely wives with amazing husbands who somehow cannot do anything to her suit yet he tries tirelessly – remember when you had prayed for a godfearing husband who would provide and protect, now he’s an answered prayer that you can’t even see. For those professionals who have spent years studying, sacrificing time with family, and sacrificing sleep and time with friends. You even sacrificed your mental health, putting in an unhealthy amount of time and effort into accomplishing that MBBS/MD, that Finance degree, or that Law Degree, yet after achieving that goal you start to treat the accomplishment as though it’s a burden. Not all, but some of the feelings behind what was stated may be a result of the spirit of complacency.

If you have reached this point in the blog, you may be asking yourself – Where is the encouragement? Isn’t this a motivational blog?  Just stay with me for a minute.

Embracing the spirit of gratitude and denouncing complacency – Frees You !!

Mental chains become broken and PEACE enters in. Mindsets shift and Joy overflows.

This encourages me!!

Be encouraged to rejoice always.

When the pressures of life come upon you, take a trip down memory lane to those early morning prayers with the Lord. You begging the Lord for an opportunity to make your family proud, with tears rolling down your cheeks and you whimpering between your words. Travel back to those lonely nights when you were desperate for a family and would whisper a prayer in your heart for a husband and children. Reminisce on those days when you had difficulty making ends meet, could hardly pay rent, and went to bed without food. Sometimes we forget.

When situations get hard, remember the same God who brought you to the place you are now can carry you through any difficult situation. Rejoice Always.

Be encouraged to pray without ceasing.

It is hard to remember where God has taken you from and how He has positioned you in His will for His glory, if you’re not spending time with Him in prayer. It’s easy to drift and tolerate a spirit of ungratefulness ( which yields fruits of dissatisfaction and discontent and sometimes depression) if we aren’t spending time with the Lord in prayer. So I encourage you – Pray without ceasing !!

In everything give thanks.

When I look at my life I’m filled with joy ( It wasn’t like this before the divine revelation of gratitude came upon me). I now see that every challenge is an opportunity to operate in excellence. Every opportunity given to me is one to make His name known. Every difficult situation is an opportunity to exercise faith. I’m not expecting ease, but I’m expecting God to show up every time and for that – I Give God Thanks !!!

Petal Perry Motivates