1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-18.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

TO PONDER

What are you thankful for today?

A number of years ago, well before I entered the ministry, I experienced a period of depression. When I looked at my life and considered it as a whole, I was only able to see the things that were not going according to the plan I had mapped out for myself. In my own mind, there was nothing to be thankful for.

I was encouraged to go and seek some professional help from some mental health care professionals and I remember vividly my first appointment and my reaction to it. At the end of my first appointment I was given the task of keeping a thankfulness journal and I was to record in that journal three things each day that I was thankful for.

I have to confess I was sceptical and disappointed to have homework to do after my first appointment but supposed I didn't really have anything to lose. So I took myself to the local newsagent, bought a small notebook and started being thankful.

I was thankful for stupid little things at first. Thankful to be alive in the morning, thankful for a warm bed, thankful that the work day was over, that sort of thing. I didn't want to take the task to seriously because I didn't see how it could help me with all the things I had going on at the time that made me feel like my life was a train wreck. However, over the course of a couple of weeks before my next appointment, this simple act of deliberate daily thankfulness had changed my attitude significantly.

So when I read the verses for today in 1 Thessalonians, I hear it very differently now than I did before difficult time in my life. Up until then I figured I was supposed to be thankful because God wanted to receive my thanks and praise; that was his will for me, to praise him. I'm inclined to read it differently now. God wants us to rejoice and give thanks in all circumstances because doing so helps us to see the good in the midst of the bad and can restore us to the joy of our salvation even in the middle of depressing and seemingly overwhelming circumstances. - this joy is God's will for your life in Christ Jesus.

So if the weight of the day just gone feels crushingly heavy, or the prospect of the day ahead seems overwhelming ominous, take a little time to find 3 things to thank and praise God for. It will make a difference.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I thank you that I can come to you in prayer and that you have promised to hear me. Please help me to see more clearly the things I have to be grateful for each day and help me to celebrate with joy all the reasons I have to praise you. Amen.

Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle