In order to be able to hear God’s voice clearly, we have to un-clutter our minds and refocus our minds on the goodness of the Lord. Reading God’s written Word is the best way to do this, in addition to constant prayer. We also must be sure to release all of our cares and worries to Him during our prayer times, believing that by faith, He hears us and that He is working on these things in our lives on our behalf.
7 Throw all your anxiety onto him, because he cares about you. (1 peter 5:7 CEB)
It is really easy for us to be thankful for obvious things in our lives that are good: our families, birthdays, our homes, and love in our lives, just to name a few. It is important to know that God not only commands us to love, but He also commands us to be thankful in ALL circumstances; not to be thankful for those circumstances! This includes seemingly unpleasant life events, situations, and day-to-day things such as a death, an illness, or some other sad event in life. While these things are going on around us we must be sure to still be thankful as we go through all of the situations in our lives. Being thankful during all circumstances begins with first changing our attitude toward those circumstances. When we decide to change our attitude to a positive and Godly attitude, it allows us to see God in each of those situations. Once we are able to see God’s hand in it all, we can then start to recognize what actual good things are coming from those issues in our lives. When we are thankful for all things, we please God! This shows Him that we trust him fully with control of our lives and that we know He is working all things together for our good and for our benefit. As in any relationship, trust must be a key factor in our personal relationship with God.
We must remember to accept each day as it comes to us, knowing that God is sovereign over our lives. This means that God has supreme or ultimate power over our lives. We have to choose to rejoice and be glad in each and every day, no matter how it is delivered to us! We shouldn’t regret or resent the way things are, we can choose to be thankful in just the way they are given to us! In addition to choosing to be thankful in all things, we must always remember that:
- God is good
- His love endures (lasts) forever and ever
- God answers prayers
- God gives us wisdom and reveals His truths to us when we pray
Additional Verse For Further Study:
This is the day the Lord acted;
we will rejoice and celebrate in it! (Psalm 118:24 CEB)
Prayer Starter:
Lord, you are great. Thank you for working all things together for my good. I trust you and know that you are sovereign over my life. You have a master plan for me and you have good things planned for my life no matter how things may appear in the natural world. I will continue to develop my relationship with you each day.
Have a great day, everyone!
