Are you thankful?

The word that was given to me tonight was so powerful that I had to share it.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Since we have to believe that God is in control of our destiny then we have to know that any circumstance is all a part of God’s will for our lives. Even when it is stressful or difficult there are lessons that we must learn before we can move on. God doesn’t require works or sacrifice from us. He wants us to be thankful and believe in His son. Our salvation is not dependent upon our effort to please Him. I had to learn that the hard way.

Sometimes in my race to make Him proud of me I hinder myself because I consider my mistakes to be the end of everything good He has for me. But God is not caught up in my mistakes, He is more concerned with my ability to get back up and thank Him for getting me out of the mess I made.

So when I was in the job situation where I was unhappy, I made things even worse by focusing on the negative and not being thankful for the provision. My bills were paid. I could go to Walmart and enjoy myself. My sons didnt want for anything. But in my heart all I was feeling was, “This is not right. I could be doing so much more,” which I do believe was my yearning to walk in my annointing but I never had any direction or inclination to change my situation. Yes God gave me the desire to write and uplift, but it wasn’t my time to move into that yet and I made my days miserable because I was not thankful.

I could have made things a whole lot better during my season there if I would have steadily praised God for His provision while I waited for direction on my next move. God knows the desires of your heart and He is faithful to provide accordingly if you abide in Him and His word abides in you. So no matter where you are today, if you are faithfully seeking His face and considering Him in all of your decisions, each day you wake up is another step toward your destiny.

But when we forget to be thankful we open up the door for so much confusion to come in. Our ungratefulness leads to bitterness and even mistrust of God. We look at the current situation and think that it will last forever but it won’t. There’s more in Christ. There’s more to life than our current circumstance.

Each situation should be seen as a step in a staircase. Without each step, the staircase will not stand. You are where you are because you need to be there to get to the next step. You are going through what you are going through because you need that lesson to help you through the next situation.

Will you get mad and hop over the railing because you can’t see the top of the long winding staircase? Or will you continue to climb, trusting God totally with your path and enduring all to get to the door that will lead to your destiny?

Believe me, your path has already been laid out. Step by step He is directing you, just dont quit because you can’t see why you have to take the long climb.

Just like pimping ain’t easy, walking in God’s light ain’t easy. But who said your walk with Christ was going to be all rosey? You had to die to allow Jesus to come in and to continue to die to your own desires and flesh is to continue to allow more of Him in. “Not my will but your will be done, Lord.”

When you gave your life to Christ you were so grateful for being chosen by Him and being forgiven. Never forget that. You were chosen by Him. You are forgiven.

Make an effort to live each day with a thankful heart. It lessens the stress and pleases God. And soon you will be able to look past the rickety step you are on and focus on the bigger picture which is the peace of God that awaits you as you allow Him to lead you into your personal heaven on earth.

Now go on and thank Him.