The greatest way to grow in faith in God’s goodness is to thank Him for everything that comes at you. It is God’s will for your first response to any circumstance be thanksgiving (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Here are some of the benefits of being thankful:
- Prepares you to experience God. We enter God’s presence with thanksgiving (Psalm 100:4).
- Prepares you for more blessing from God. As you complain about what you are going through, it will stagnate your growth (Philippians 2:14-18).
- Prepares you for the peace of God. It removes our focus on the situation and on the anxiety (Philippians 4:6-7).
- Prepares you for God’s joy. Thanksgiving and joy go hand and hand (Psalm 100). Giving thanks changes our perspective and gives us hope.
- Prepares you to hear from God. As you hold onto your negative interpretations of events, you will not hear what God is saying. The disciples heard Jesus plans of death and resurrection, but when it happened they were clueless because they could not see it as being good (Matthew 16:21-23).
Are you going through a hard time? Are you struggling with depression and anxiety? Try to take steps of faith and thank God for everything that has happened to you. Choose to believe in God’s goodness for you. He sees you and love you.