1. Mindfully. “Bless the Lord o my soul…..and forget not all his benefits.” Psalm 103:2. That is the problem. People tend to forget. If we remember His faithfulness and mercy in the past, we will be able to trust Him for the present and the future. Don’t allow your confidence got shaken by challenges. Don’t murmur. Murmuring is so poisonous it destroys confidence, faith, hope and the will to survive.
Document your victories in a journal. That way you will not forget them. William Penn said, “The secret of happiness is to count your blessings while others are adding up their troubles.” Everyone has something to thank God for.
2. As A Lifestyle. God wants us to be Thankful always. Beyond change and restoration, God’s original design is for us to live and enjoy all that he has provided and because we are convinced he has provided everything, we should always be grateful to him regardless of what we are going through knowing that we are safe and that everything has already been taken care of. Thanksgiving is supposed to be a lifestyle for all those who truly believe.
Praise documents the level of your confidence in God. King David said “My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises!” Psalm 108:1(NLT). You will not find it difficult to praise God if you are confident in him. God wants us to be so confident in the finished work of Calvary that all we need to do is to offer him the sacrifice of thanksgiving continually! If you are finding it difficult to praise God, it’s because you have no confidence in him. If you have confidence in his ability to keep you; if you believe God is your refuge and keeper, you will praise him profusely when you are faced with a life-threatening situation.
If you believe that God is your source, you will not look at how much you have in your pocket in order to determine whether or not you should be grateful to him for meeting your needs. You will not be asking questions like ‘God where are you?’
When the unexpected happens, you will not ask ‘God what have I done; Why me?’ Rather you will be thanking him first because it could have been worst and secondly because he already made a way out of it even before it happened. And as you worship him, your deliverance will begin to unfold.
3. By Testifying. Psalm 105:1-2, “1O give thanks unto the LORD; call upon his name: MAKE KNOWN HIS DEEDS AMONG THE PEOPLE. 2Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: TALK YE OF ALL HIS WONDROUS WORKS.”
God wants us to share our testimonies of his goodness and miracles in our lives in the church and to all our neighbours. That way, we give him the glory. You deny God the glory due to Him when you fail to testify. He wants us to be appreciative of his mercies and kindness. He wants us to be appreciative for: (a) the past; for all his goodness, kindness and mercy. (b) The present and (c) for the glorious future he has planned for us. Publicize your testimonies. It inspires confidence in you and others to face present challenges courageously and with hope. Let us make next Sunday a testimony day.
4. With An Appropriate And Appreciable Thanksgiving Offering. Gratitude is best expressed with a gift. Hannah came for thanksgiving with sacrifices and to fulfill her vow unto God. She took Samuel to Shiloh to leave him with the Lord as she promised. She had received a high-impact miracle. “And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine, and brought him unto the house of the LORD in Shiloh: and the child was young.” 1Samuel 1:24. She offered God the most precious gift of her life: Samuel, the child she had looked for all her life! You ought to offer God something precious; something substantial!
See God’s response to Hannah:
“And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home. [21] And the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters.” 1Samuel 2:20-21
The Lord will visit you and multiply what you give to him back to you!
The Lord will establish his blessings upon your life and all that you do as you embrace thanksgiving as a lifestyle!