PUTTING GOD FIRST IN THANKSGIVING AND PRAISE (PART 2 OF 2)

14^th JANUARY 2020

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  – Phil 4:6

Today, we continue our discourse from yesterday’s devotional on the importance of thanksgiving and gratitude to God. I want you to recall that any positive idea you conceived or any contemplated steps you wish to take in your work is a blessing and a gift from God, even though you have not yet seen the manifestation of your desired goal.  That you are able to conceive an idea or plan a course of action is a blessing itself! With time, you will receive a physical manifestation of your desired goal. Thanksgiving, therefore, brings into physical manifestation what God has provided already in the spiritual! Therefore, you are thankful to God, even when you have not physically received from God. What an expression of faith! The best form of putting God first in the things that we do is to offer praises and thanksgiving to God first, before embarking on our projects. In this respect, we are thanking God for the opportunity to embark on the project. Our Thanksgiving offering will be the gift itself! This means giving back to God what God has given to us so we can receive more from Him. And so, like Abraham, we move with faith to offer back to God what God has provided already, which, in the above example is the opportunity to embark on a project. Here, we are simply saying, ‘God, I thank you for the provision of this lofty opportunity for me to be blessed. I offer this opportunity to you as my offering, and I ask that you make a way for me to be truly blessed by a physical manifestation of my desired goals.  When you are thankful to God even when you have not yet received a physical manifestation, something extraordinary begins to happen in your life. You will instantly begin to experience the following signs:

1.     God moves ahead of you and begin to create ways for the physical manifestation of your desires – Psalm 22:3

2.     Your faith is enlarged! Thanksgiving enlarges our faith in God our creator.

3.     You gain more confidence and trust in God. Constant praises and gratitude to God strengthens your faith in God and gives you more confidence to rely on Him. The scripture says in Romans 4:20 that, Abraham “grew strong and was empowered by faith as he gave praise and glory to God”. When you give thanks to God constantly, He gives you the strength to understand His mysteries. With this revelation comes the grace to believe God in all things.

4.     You are constantly protected and safe. Thanksgiving is a shield against contrary spirits and opposing forces. Thanksgiving puts light into the darkness in our lives and brings us to the realm of mercy and forgiveness. At the point of having mercy on us, God assumes our battles and pulls us to safety. – (Ref: Psalm 9)

Nevertheless, even when we have no project at hand, but are just asking God for a lead or to make a way for us, we still have to proceed with thanksgiving and gratitude to God FIRST while we anticipate a beautiful outcome. In this case, we open our heart to receive a bountiful outcome from God, whilst believing He will make a way for us, or at least, tell us what to do in order to change our situation for good. Thanksgiving and gratitude not only open doors of opportunities but also brings into manifestation a beautiful and satisfactory end.

  PRAYER

Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, I thank you for the gift of life and the grace to partake of your heritage. I thank you for the beautiful gifts of life. Accept these in return as my offering to thee. I trust in your power of speedy manifestation of the things you have provided for me. Thank you, father. AMEN.

FURTHER READING:  James 1:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Luke 17; 1 Peter 2:21)