WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
AUGUST 27, 2021
TOPIC: SEVEN REASONS YOU SHOULD GIVE THANKS TO GOD ALWAYS
BY T. O. BANSO
“Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:17-20 New King James Version).
We can never thank God enough for all the things He has done for us. It is a good habit everyone should cultivate. It is a good discipline we should learn and never abandon.
Psalm 92:1-2 says it is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to the Most High; it is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening. Also, Ephesians 5:20 talks about giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
There are many reasons to give thanks to God and any list may not be complete. But it is not in doubt that the Bible says we should give thanks to God. Whatever is your reason for thanking God any time, go ahead and thank Him. Ingratitude is a sin. It is wrong not to thank Him. Psalm 100:4 says to enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name. Also, Psalm 147:7 says we should sing to the LORD with thanksgiving and sing praise upon the harp to our God:
I want to share with you seven out of the many reasons you should thank God. Some people don’t consider some of them as reasons to thank God. This should not be so.
Reasons to thank God always
1. For keeping you alive. Hannah said, “The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up” (1 Samuel 2:6 New King James Version). Many have died through road accidents, sicknesses, mysterious circumstances, etc. but God has kept you alive. He has healed you and delivered you from danger, and you have enjoyed divine safety and protection. This is why you’re still alive.
You are not better than the Galileans that Jesus was told in Luke 13:1 that Pilate had mingled their blood with their sacrifices. “And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?” (Verse 2 New King James Version).
Neither are you better than those eighteen people that Jesus said the tower in Siloam fell on and killed (Luke 13:4). You are not better than those armed robbers, terrorists, or other criminals have killed. You are neither better than those who died because of the COVID-19 pandemic or one tragedy or the other. You need to thank God for keeping you alive. Only the living can praise God (Isaiah 38:19).
God has been faithful in protecting you. He has surrounded His people as the mountain surrounds Jerusalem (Psalm 125:2). Lamentation 3:22 says it is through the Lord’s mercy that we are not consumed. You have enjoyed His mercy. You should thank Him.
Caleb said, “And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, as He said, these forty-five years, ever since the LORD spoke this word to Moses while Israel wandered in the wilderness; and now, here I am this day, eighty-five years old (Joshua 14:10 New King James Version). Thank God for keeping you alive until this day.
2. For your salvation and constant standing in the faith. Several people are alive but are not yet saved. Many have died in their sins. Some are no more in Christ. You have to thank God that your faith has not suffered a shipwreck. 1 Timothy 1:19 says some people’s faith has suffered shipwreck. It is not by your power that you’re standing. It is by His grace.
Romans 5:1-2 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (New King James Version).
Thank God for keeping you from stumbling or falling. “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24 New King James Version). You are not standing in the faith by your power. It is by His grace.
3. For spiritual blessings from God. Ephesians 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ” (NKJV). The New Living Translation renders it thus: “How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we belong to Christ.”
Although Paul didn’t specifically list out these spiritual blessings in the chapter, one can see them being mentioned one after the other, especially from verses 3-14. I urge you to read it. You need to thank God for the spiritual blessings which are more valuable than money. You cannot pay for them.
4. For material blessings. Deuteronomy 8:18 says, “And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day” (New King James Version).
You may have laboured to acquire whatever you made but, without God, your labour could have been in vain. “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep” (Psalm 127:1-2 New King James Version).
Proverbs 10:22 says the blessing of the LORD makes rich and He adds no sorrow with it. Acknowledge God as the source of your material blessings. He gives you the power to get wealth. Jesus said you should seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and God will add to you all the things you need (Matthew 6:33).
5. For the progress you have made in life. You should thank God for the progress you have made in life. You may not be where you had thought you would be by now but you’re not where you used to be. God didn’t allow you to experience stagnation or retrogression. Your life moved forward. You need to thank God for that. Your progress was not by your power alone. “For exaltation comes neither from the east nor from the west nor from the south But God is the Judge: He puts down one, and exalts another’ (Psalm 75:6-7 New King James Version).
Psalm 33:16-17 says, “No king is saved by the multitude of an army; a mighty man is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a vain hope for safety; neither shall it deliver any by its great strength” (New King James Version).
In Exodus 14:15, the LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward” (New King James Version). Motivated by that word, Moses led the Israelites forward. You need to thank God for moving you forward by His word.
Give thanks to God; don’t take credit for what God has done. Hannah said, “The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the beggar from the ash heap, To set them among princes And make them inherit the throne of glory” (1 Samuel 2:7-8 New King James Version). She said, by strength, no man shall prevail (verse 9b).
6. For the people in your life. These people include your husband, wife, children, family members, friends, neighbours, and staff. They include all those who have been a blessing to you – familiar people and new people that God brought into your life.
Thank God for keeping them alive, for not allowing Satan to use any of them to trouble you through money and time-gulping illnesses and the like, for using you to affect their lives positively, and for using them also to add to your life or lift you up.
Paul wrote from his Roman prison, “At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me” (2 Timothy 4:16 New King James Version). Loneliness or desertion could be depressive. This great apostle knew what it meant to be deserted by the people in one’s life. Though men forsook him, God didn’t. Paul said, “But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear. Also I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!” (2 Timothy 4:17-18 New King James Version).
Earlier in verses 10-11, he said, “For Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica — Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry” (New King James Version). Thank God that you have good people, faithful people, helpful people in your life. Don’t take this for granted. It has been rightly said that those who belittle people will be little people.
Thank God also that He didn’t allow you to have sorrow over the people in your life. Paul, talking about Epaphroditus, a messenger sent by the church at Philippi with a gift for him when he was under house arrest in Rome, said, “For indeed he was sick almost unto death; but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow” (Philippians 2:27 New King James Version).
7. For God is in control of your life. If you’re born again, God is in control of your life and is working all things, including your mistakes, together for your good. God loves you so much that He is committed to fulfilling His purpose for your life once you love Him and the fact that you’re called according to His purpose. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28 New King James Version). Your life is God’s project that cannot fail.
As I have said, this list is not complete. You, probably, will be able to add more but I have limited myself to these seven. How many of these reasons are the reasons you thank God? If you have not been thanking God for these reasons, start today.
“Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:17-20 New King James Version).
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and resurrected the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Father, I repent of my failure to give You thanks. I will enter into Your gates with thanksgiving, and into Your courts with praise: I will be thankful to You, and bless Your name. Father, thank You for all You have done for me, including my being keeping me alive, my salvation, and constant standing in the faith. Thank You for everything Father.
(For over 600 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President, Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
