Thankful

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

High-Level Thankfulness is my goal. I can't say that I always achieve it, but I’m going for it with all my heart. The reason for High-Level Thankfulness is that it is an indication of the heart. It demonstrates that our lives are in balance—that our thankfulness is not just about getting a few things from God.

Maybe a little explanation is due here. I’m suggesting that there is a Low-Level Thankfulness and a High-Level Thankfulness. Unfortunately, many dwell in the lower level. That’s where we see God at work in our lives with sporadic spurts of blessing for which we say, “Thank You.” We say, “Thanks” because we received some wanted pleasurable thing. That kind of thankfulness misses the total perspective of God’s goodness. 

High-Level Thankfulness is a consistent “Thanks” in the good and the bad. It comes with the belief that God is in control, that He is doing things for our good and His glory, even when we can't see it or understand it. 

In her great testimony about survival in a German concentration camp, The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom told of a time when her sister said they should be thankful for everything in their barracks. Corrie refused because there was an infestation of fleas making their lives even more miserable. Later, she found out that it was the fleas that kept the guards away from their barracks, which allowed them to have undisturbed prayer meetings. She came around and said, “Thank You, Lord, for the fleas!”

So, while you are thanking God “who satisfies your mouth with good things” [Psalm 103.5], don’t forget to thank Him for the “fleas” as well. Remember, God is in control and knows what is best. That’s because, God is good—all the time, and All the time—God is good!

Then I will praise God’s name with singing, and I will honor Him with thanksgiving. Psalm 69.30