Keeping an Attitude of Gratitude Alive Year-Round

“Attitude of Gratitude” has become somewhat cliché, but there’s much truth to it, especially for followers of Christ. As Christians, we are called to be thankful in all things, which involves more than just saying “thank you.” We are to be characterized by a mindset of gratitude, not just during one week of the year, but day in and day out.

So here are a few ideas for how to keep an attitude of gratitude alive year-round:

1) Preach the Gospel to yourself every day.

If you’ve sat under my dad’s teaching for any length of time, you’ve heard him say this and explain why it’s important. The Gospel—the good news of Jesus’s perfect life, atoning death, and victorious resurrection in light of God’s holiness and our sinfulness—is our very life. It is not just the basis of our faith; it is the substance of it, reminding us of who God is, who we are, and what God has done, is doing, and will do for us. When we let these truths sink deeply into our hearts and minds, it is impossible not to be thankful.

2) Memorize verses about thankfulness.

One thing that helps us preach the Gospel to ourselves every day is implanting God’s Word in our minds (something you’ve probably heard my mom talk about if you know her). All of Scripture gives us cause to be thankful, but there are many verses that specifically mention thanksgiving. And the Holy Spirit, in His perfect way, takes the seeds of Scripture we have sown and brings them to bear by recalling them when we need them most. Memorizing verses about thanksgiving will lead to a broader and deeper mindset of thankfulness as we meditate on the Truth of God’s Word.

Here are some verses to get you started (all ESV):

Psalm 9:1 – “I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.”

Psalm 28:7 – “The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.”

Psalm 57:9 – “I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations.”

Psalm 75:1 – “We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.”

Psalm 79:13 – “But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise.”

Psalm 97:12 – “Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name!”

Psalm 106:1 – “Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!”

Psalm 111:1 – “Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation.”

1 Corinthians 15:57 – “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

2 Corinthians 2:14 – “But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.”

2 Corinthians 9:15 – “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!”

Ephesians 5:4 – “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”

Ephesians 5:18-21 – “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

Philippians 4:5b-6 – “The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let you requests be made known to God.”

Colossians 1:11-12 – “May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.”

Colossians 3:17 – “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Colossians 4:2 – “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”

1 Thessalonians 5:18 – “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Revelation 7:11-12 – “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.’”

3) Give “Thankful Throwback Thursdays” a try.

This is something I did during 2015, putting a spin on the TBT (Throw Back Thursday) trend. Each Thursday on social media, I posted a picture from days or years past that represented something or someone I was thankful for, along with a short explanatory paragraph. Not only did this give me opportunity to outwardly express gratitude, but it also made gratitude a conscious act each week and helped thankfulness to be more characteristic of my thinking as I considered throughout each week what to post about.

You can put your own spin on this idea, too. It doesn’t have to be posting a picture—or posting at all, for that matter. You can journal instead, or simply make it part of your routine on Thursdays to think back on your recent and distant past and acknowledge thanks to God for the gifts, both physical and spiritual, He has given you.

4) Express gratitude for others.

Ultimately, we know that “Every good and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17, ESV). That is, God is the ultimate object of our gratitude. But it is good for us to express gratitude to others in our lives as well, even as we acknowledge that it is by God’s allowance that their paths intersect with ours.  

Whether it’s writing a note, making a phone call, or doing something tangible as a way to say “thank you; I appreciate you,” there are many ways to express gratitude. Be creative, and look for opportunities to give the gift of thankfulness.

Woven through all of these is the theme of the Gospel. I mentioned earlier that with an understanding of the Gospel it is impossible not to be thankful, but it should also be noted that without the Gospel, it is difficult to be thankful. Even as a believer, my flesh still rages against the Spirit, pulling me into the tunnel vision of self-centeredness. It is only when the Spirit takes over that I am better able to grasp the goodness of God and to turn my thoughts from the worries of this world to the many blessings I have in Christ.

I hope and pray that the Spirit will cultivate in you an attitude of gratitude as you meditate inwardly on the Gospel and God’s Word and as you express outwardly your thankfulness for others and for God Himself.

Empathy and Love in the Face of Fear and Hatred: The Aftermath of Election 2016

I tread carefully as I write this post, because no matter what I say or how I say it, there will be those who likely will take offense. But I am saddened to the core over the reactions I have seen in the past week to the outcome of our presidential election, so this is my feeble, imperfect attempt to demonstrate compassion and encouragement while issuing a challenge to everyone. Please know that I write out of genuine concern for each person who will read this, and please gird up your minds and join me in some tough self-examination.

First, to Christians who voted for Trump—instead of scoffing at people who are expressing fear of a Trump presidency, now is a time for empathy. I’ve already seen the posts in all caps from liberals yelling at those who would dare question someone else’s feelings, and while that method of expression is certainly not the most persuasive, the message has some merit: we must try to put ourselves in others’ shoes.

For some of us, it is helpful to remember how we felt eight (and perhaps four) years ago.  When I see people crying about Trump’s victory, I remember the tears I shed as a teenager when I realized Obama was our next President-elect. I was genuinely fearful for the future of our nation, having read between the lines and understood the underlying worldview behind his goal to “fundamentally transform” America.

I went to bed that night with a sinking, gut-wrenching sense that our country would become an increasingly hostile place for me to live as a Christian, and I tried to comfort myself with the knowledge that no matter what happened, it would be okay because I belonged to God. But it was hard to rest in that knowledge and to overcome my fear.

And as the days passed, my fear began to verge on anger towards anyone who was “ignorant” enough to vote for such a man. (See, I told you I wasn’t perfect! God is still breaking me of such unholy attitudes.)

I can hear the objections now…How could you think that about President Obama? Such a fear was completely irrational; there was no basis for it! And how dare you insult my intelligence!

Is anyone else seeing the irony here? The exact same thing is happening now, except the tables are turned. Replace “live as a Christian” with “live as an [LGBT/non-white/Muslim, etc.] individual” and replace “Obama” with “Trump” and we have the discussions, to use a mild word, that have been saturating social media over the last week.

In the face of all these emotion-laden expressions, it can be difficult to respond graciously. So just as I remember my tears, I also try to imagine what I would have felt like if people who had voted for Obama accosted me with their perspective of why my fear was silly or not real. I wouldn’t have liked it. Now eight years later, it’s imperative for me to remember that, because otherwise I too easily fail to treat others as I’ve wanted to be treated for the past eight years.

Moment of confession here: when I hear people expressing the kind of fear that they have been this past week, my logic-oriented brain is quick to point out all the reasons that their fear is unfounded. In fact, I was planning on doing some of that in this very post. And even though I want to point out all these reasons because I want to show people whom I care about that they don’t have to suffer through a life of fear, I have to step back and recognize that even though my motives are to help, my methods may not be helpful.

See, the thing about fear is that whether it is based in reality or not, it in and of itself is still real. This post by Anthony Bushnell helped remind me of that fact. So let us try to exhibit empathy that we might best demonstrate that we are there for our neighbor no matter what. As Bushnell so poignantly expresses, “We don’t have to agree with the intensity of their fear in order to empathize with them. Compassion doesn’t require us to be convinced another person is entirely correct. It requires us to care about how he is feeling. Even if you think the danger won’t come to pass, the fear is certainly real.”

What kind of followers of Jesus are we if we fail to care for those who are hurting? Do we recognize that we are accountable to God for how we treat others? May He help us to show His compassion to everyone—especially to those with whom we disagree.

Now, for those who did not vote for Trump [remember, I gave fair warning at the beginning of this post that I’m an equal-opportunity challenger]—it is incumbent upon you to show empathy as well. Can you expect people to treat you with respect if you spew vitriolic tirades accusing them of being insensitive, stupid, or racist? Doing so only perpetuates a vicious cycle. If you really believe that “love trumps hate,” then start demonstrating love—even to those who voted for Trump. Christians, you are called to do this by the one whose Name you claim.

But perhaps you’re not a Christian, and you don’t care what God demands of us. Then let me appeal to this perspective instead: if you find that you can’t bring yourself to love those who voted differently than you, then you have no reasonable grounds to expect that they love you. You can’t demand something you are not willing to give. If it’s impossible for you to love those you disagree with, how do you think it is possible for others to love those that they disagree with?

I’ll admit, without Christ, loving those who disagree with you is incredibly difficult. Personally, I honestly don’t know that I could do it. We are far too concerned with our own egos, our own opinions, and what we think is best for our own lives.

That’s what makes God’s love for us so mind-blowingly beautiful. See, from the time of our birth, we don’t just disagree with God, we hate Him. We live our lives as His mortal enemies, insisting, in our pride, that we know best, and persisting to live for our own pleasure and comfort instead of for His glory. Can you imagine what an affront that is to the Creator for us His creation to so spit in His face?

And yet He loved us. I’m talking about real, genuine, I’ll-die-for-you kind of love—love that doesn’t wait for us to come to Him but that runs after us—love that planned from the beginning of time to pay the ultimate sacrifice of taking our own punishment on Himself—love that revealed to us what His standards are, showed us how we fall short, and provided a substitute who could give us His righteousness—love that desires for enemies to be made sons and daughters, beneficiaries of the eternal kingdom of God.

Whether you voted for Trump or not, if you struggle with loving those you view as your enemies, take a moment to quiet your spirit and ask yourself—have you experienced the life-transforming love of God? Have you ever come to grip with the fact that God created you to be good and holy as He is good and holy but that you are by your very nature evil and unholy—and there is no amount of good deeds that can ever make you good enough?

Have you ever been grieved over the way you grieve the heart of God?

Have you ever admitted the many ways you have fallen short and turned away from them to Jesus who lived the perfect life you never could? Have you ever accepted and placed complete trust in the fact that His death and resurrection made it possible for you not to have to receive the just punishment for your life of rebellion against God and that His perfect life made it possible for you to be presented before God as one who is blameless—good and holy as you were created to be?

If the answer to these questions for you is “No,” then I pray you will come to understand these truths about who God is, who you are, what God has done on your behalf, and how you can be restored into a beautiful relationship with Him and receive the gift of His Holy Spirit who will bring His fruit to bear in your everyday life—fruit that is encompassed by the greatest element of all: Love.