There are so many times throughout my life when I have questioned God’s will for me. I experience fear of making wrong decisions and I truly just want God to make things a little more clear. What I have learned in these moments is that I am not seeking God like I should. God gives us everything we need for living out His will in His word. So what does His word say? One thing is that when we accept Jesus in our hearts, the Lord commands us to bring Him a sacrifice of thanksgiving and that means in all circumstances.
“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”1 Thessalonians 5:18
I would say that is pretty clear!
Because of Jesus, being the ultimate sacrifice for our sins, we no longer have to bring animals or any other blood sacrifices to God. A sacrifice of thanksgiving means our lifestyle is going to reflect our thankfulness. Our attitude no matter what comes our way will always praise God, not because of the hardship, but because we have a Father who is with us during the difficult times. A sacrifice is giving up something that is valuable to you in order to help someone else. That means that we let go of our own desires, our time is completely dedicated to serving our heavenly Father in order to bring Him the glory. It isn’t always easy, that is why it is called a sacrifice. We don’t always feel thankful but we can know that when we live in thankfulness we defeat the enemy of worry, anxiety, depression, etc.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God.” Philippians 4:6
When we live a life of thankfulness it opens our hearts to hear from God especially in moments when our hearts are fearful and anxious. He is never closer than when we are showing our gratitude. It honors God and it is a privilege. He created each and every one of us for His glory. God’s will for our lives is to offer our lives to Him in everything we do, in our service, in our giving, in our praise, in our worship, in our prayers, and in total devotion to bringing Him glory. These things are all a sacrifice of thanksgiving.
“Anyone who sacrifices thank offerings to Me honors Me. He makes it possible for Me to show him that I am the God who saves.” Psalm 50:23
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