1 Thessalonians 5:18

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

God gives the gift of gratitude—and like every gift He gives, it is only truly expressed when we give it away.

Why Gratitude? Because God Is Good

This series, From Now Till Christmas, is about the gifts God gives us that are designed to be given out to other people—and today's gift is gratitude. Why should we be grateful? First, because God is good.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. (1 Chronicles 16:34)

But that goodness leaves us with a problem. God is the very author and definition of good, and we are not. Picture a perfect Thanksgiving meal—the turkey perfect, the mashed potatoes on point. Now spread bad gravy over all of it. Something imperfect taints the whole thing. That's our situation: because God is good and we are not, there is a separation between us.

We learn early that we can't fix this. Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, kids are told to "be good" because they want good gifts. I learned young that I'm not capable of that. I can fake it for a while, but it doesn't take long to discover that the standard of perfect good is completely unattainable for us.

And yet—because God is good, because His love endures forever—God Himself made a way for us through the person and work of Jesus Christ.

If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:7)

This doesn't mean we become sinless—five minutes in freeway traffic will remind you that we're sinful creatures. But God gives us the status of "good" because He paid our debt.

Why Gratitude? Because God Gives Good Gifts

The first good gift we received was Jesus—the original good gift. His death made a way for us to be right with God.

I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge... so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:4–8)

Paul is writing to the church in Corinth as they took up a collection for the persecuted church in Jerusalem—much like how we respond today to flood relief, disaster relief, or our own missions work like this week in Manitoba, Mexico. The stated goal was to meet a need, but the unstated fruit was that thanksgiving to God was multiplied.

God gives good gifts. He says they were enriched "in every way"—not just financially, but in all speech and knowledge, lacking no gift. That's not just Corinth; that's us. God has given us all the gifts we could possibly need, and yet we often miss it.

He died for us, which makes us right with Him. Then He gives us the Holy Spirit so we can actually walk with Him and become more like Him—sealed and marked as His. But wait, there's more: through the Holy Spirit we receive love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Notice this about those gifts—they're only truly expressed as we give them to other people. Patience means nothing unless I'm dealing with others; I don't need much patience with myself. Kindness to myself is ultimately self-serving. These gifts come into play as we interact with the people around us.

This should inspire gratitude: thank You, God, for what You've done, and for letting me partner with You in reaching the world. And remember—God designed you to be exactly who you are and gave you specific gifts for a specific mission. I can't run like Marshawn Lynch, but Marshawn Lynch probably can't preach to a youth group as often as I do. We have different gifts.

Why Gratitude? Because It's the Will of God

We show gratitude because God calls us to.

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Sometimes we struggle to discern God's will, but this is one of the easy ones to highlight: God wants me to be thankful in all circumstances. The catch is the word all. Thank the giver of the gift—whether it's your mom or your enemy. But what happens when the circumstances aren't great? What about a situation we'd call genuinely bad?

Consider a vet show I've been watching on Disney Plus. A beef cow is struggling in labor, thrashing, running into walls, ropes on her legs and head—from her perspective, the worst day imaginable. But the vet knew that without help, the baby would die and that would kill the mother. The cow had no perspective on her situation. The same is true of us. We rarely get the benefit of God's perspective or see the long game.

We just finished studying Job together. Job never got to sit down and read the book of Job and see the back story. He simply lived through it. We don't get the explanation either—because if God explained everything, it would require no faith at all, and we'd probably try to help and make it worse.

Look at Naaman, the Syrian general with leprosy.

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man... but he was a leper. Now the Syrians on one of their raids had carried off a little girl from the land of Israel, and she worked in the service of Naaman's wife. She said to her mistress, "Would that my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy." (2 Kings 5)

We know Naaman gets healed. But think of the family in Israel whose little daughter was captured and taken away. I would have a nearly impossible time giving thanks in those circumstances. I'd be tempted to think nothing good could come from it—and I'd be wrong, because that little girl's testimony led a powerful Syrian to discover there is a God in Israel.

My own daughter is turning 18 this week—I have four sons and one daughter—and even normal milestones are hard for me. If she simply disappeared, how would I give thanks? God doesn't give us easy things. He gives us patience because life is hard and kindness because we don't want to be kind, and He says, "In all circumstances, be grateful." That's a tall order. We don't get the benefit of understanding His plan; He only gives us the burden of obedience. So we must trust that God is in control and that He loves us. This is why following Jesus requires faith.

Why Gratitude? Because It's Good for Us

We live in a fascinating time of scientific discovery, and what I love most is when science circles back to what the Bible already taught. From Positive Psychology: out of over 800 trait words, "grateful" was rated in the top 4% for likability. A five-minute-a-day gratitude journal can increase long-term well-being by more than 10%.

Keeping a gratitude journal led participants to report 16% fewer physical symptoms, 19% more time exercising, 10% less physical pain, 8% more sleep, and 25% better sleep quality. It lowered depressive symptoms by 30% or more as long as the practice continued—and we're in the season when depression occurs most. Hypertension patients who counted their blessings once a week saw a significant decrease in systolic blood pressure. Over 90% of American teens and adults said expressing gratitude made them extremely or somewhat happy.

That kind of happiness is rare. On Thanksgiving morning I went to Starbucks to earn good-husband points, and the drive-through line stretched around the building and down toward Vaughan's. Most people I encountered were not happy people.

Psychology Today lists seven scientifically proven benefits of gratitude: it opens the door to more relationships, improves physical health, improves psychological health, enhances empathy and reduces aggression, helps people sleep better, improves self-esteem, and increases mental strength. A 2006 study found Vietnam veterans with higher gratitude had lower rates of PTSD. A 2003 study found gratitude was a major contributor to resilience following September 11th. Recognizing what you have to be thankful for, even in the worst times, fosters resilience.

When we actually do what God calls us to do—being grateful the way He calls us to be grateful—we receive joy and satisfaction in doing what we were designed to do. God made us to show gratitude, so when we express it, we are happier.

A Word on the Baskets

Because we do Thanksgiving baskets to show gratitude, here's the tie-in. Our previous record with youth group alone was 32 baskets delivered to businesses in the community. With your help baking and donating, we pushed that to 45.

One story: Ryan Paulson, a junior-high guy, all cheeks and teeth and adorable, went to a sushi place. The manager came out ready for a fight—"Who am I talking to?"—charged up. Ryan said, "We're from Cross Connection Church, and we wanted to bring you this basket and just say thank you for serving our community." The manager's whole countenance changed. Something as simple as a measure of gratitude utterly changed his day. Thank you to everyone who brought in baskets, baked, and prayed for us.

Why Gratitude? Because It Inspires Others

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. (2 Corinthians 9)

We've been enriched in every way to be generous in every way, and our generosity inspires others to be thankful. God's gifts aren't just for our benefit—God blesses us to be a blessing to others, even if we don't see the result.

We had a basket like that. We went up to Peter King's, gave the man a basket, told him, "We're from Cross Connection Church; we just want to say thank you. Jesus loves you." He was kind of like, "Okay." But as we walked out, you could hear him in the back say, "Well, that's pretty cool."

Another Starbucks story: sometimes in line we'll pay for the car behind us—you need faith for this one, because it could be a big homeschool van. Once, coming back from a basketball tournament, the worker told me every single car that day had paid for the one behind them. When I do it, I ask the worker to tell the next car, "Jesus loves you," because it's nice to do something kind, but even better to tell people why. Christians don't always get good press—sometimes we even deserve the bad press—so when people can identify both why they should be grateful and to whom, that pays dividends.

And remember point two: God gives good gifts to everyone, not just those in the church. Listen to popular music, watch old footage of the Beatles and the crowds having what looks like a Pentecostal worship service over them—those are God-given gifts, even when the recipient doesn't recognize the Giver. We know where talent comes from. When we as the people of God give thanks to God, it helps others see whom they should thank.

At the Oscars people scramble to thank someone—Mom, Dad, an old acting coach, sometimes even "the universe"—because they know it wasn't just them. The gifts God gives are meant to bless others. Don't know your gifts? Try things. If it works, give glory to God. If it doesn't, keep trying. People will be inspired by the gifts God has given you, just as we're inspired by gifts He's given others.

What Stops Us from Showing Gratitude?

I look at my own life and see how much more I should be thankful for than I am. So what stops us? Consider Luke 17. Jesus, walking the border of Samaria and Galilee, meets ten lepers who cry for mercy. He sends them to the priests, and as they go, they're healed. Only one returns to give thanks—and he was a Samaritan.

Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? (Luke 17:17)

First, the chosen-people problem. The first-century Jewish attitude was, "Of course God does good things for us; we're His chosen people." The church can fall into the same trap—a kind of "Christian karma" or candy-machine theology. We think if we sing loud, read our Bibles, and tithe, then God is required to bless us. But we put in the right stuff, push the button, and don't always get what we asked for. That's not how it works. Without Jesus, we are sinners on the way to hell. With Jesus, we have every reason to show gratitude.

Second, the lepers may have been so focused on the gift that they forgot the Giver. Newly cleansed, there was so much to do—run to the priest, run home to family—and the Giver got lost in the rush. I almost preached today in a Santa suit to make this point: we teach kids to write letters asking Santa for things, but how many teach their kids to write a letter on the 26th thanking him? We get so focused on the gifts that we forget the One who gave them. We're inherently selfish, valuing the gift over the giver.

Third, simple distraction. This is the busy season—this party, that get-together, "Did I call my mom?"—and it's easy to go through an entire day grateful for nothing.

How to Be More Grateful

First, count your blessings. There's a hymn written in 1897: "Count your blessings, name them one by one; count your many blessings, see what God has done." Science has now proven that simply thinking about what we're grateful for makes us measurably happier.

Second, write them down—keep a gratitude journal. I'm a huge fan of phone reminders; I have one set for 10:00 every night that says "gratitude journal." Grab your phone, jot a note: what am I grateful for today? Make it a habit and it becomes easier to do what God has called us to do.

Third, tell somebody right away. If someone has done something worth thankfulness, thank them immediately. And remember—we're called to be thankful in all things. Get a speeding ticket over the holidays? Thank the officer; they don't hear that often. Thank your teachers for your grades, A or F. Thank the Costco pizza workers even when they mess up your order.

That last one happened to me. People waiting for Costco pizza lose their salvation—it's an ugly business. My order was over an hour and they got it wrong. I had the chance to freak out, or to say, "Thanks for your efforts; I know you guys are slammed." The lady behind the counter looked stunned, came over, apologized, and refunded my whole order. All I'd done was be thankful—because in the back of my mind I knew I had to preach on thankfulness and should probably practice it. It won't happen every time, but it can't hurt to be thankful. God calls us to do it.

Let's give thanks in all circumstances.

Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You. Thank You so much for all that You've done for us. Thank You for the opportunities You've given us and for the gifts that You've given us. Thank You, Jesus, for the sacrifice that You made on our behalf. Lord, as we head into the time when we celebrate Your birth, help us not to be among the hordes of people who act so horribly. And Father God, if we've done that, we beg for Your forgiveness. Help us to be those who are so grateful that it inspires the people around us. Help us, Lord Jesus, to make people think positively about You, to lead others to draw close to You because of how Your people act. Help us to do that. Thank You, Jesus, for Your grace. Thank You for the opportunities You've given to us. Amen.