Gratefulness and God's Will

I’ve never been to a meeting before where the main speaker starts out by saying something like, “do you want to know what God’s will is for you? In finding a job, a relationship, vacation, or just where does God want me? Well, I’m going tell you what God’s will is for you wether you want to hear it or not.

Look up Galatians 1:3-5.” He then continued to say that “this is not the typical verses you would think of about knowing Gods will, but his point was nevertheless very thought provoking. Is our praise for what God has done for us manifested in our lives?? How happy are we for His sacrifice? So often us Adventist’s get gospel hardened...Our happiness for what God had done should spring up in our lives as an everlasting wellspring of joy that is continually in our hearts...

Wouldn’t being grateful be one of the most amazing experiences! If the atmosphere of heaven is praise, and if the Lord inhabitants the praises of Israel, then being grateful is pretty important! You won’t get into heaven without praise on your lips. So then, how does this apply to God’s will? Well, no matter what your situation is, we know what His will is for our lives. It is found in this verse: 

1 Thessalonians 5:18 - In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Now of course, that isn’t very specific. But, if you have several different options that you want to lay before the Lord, this is what he did. For example of a job change, He said, “Well, Lord these are the different places that I could go, so I’m going to go to the place that I am the most inclined to go to, and you can close the door if it’s not your will. And you know what? God closed the door, so I went to the next best place, and that one worked out.” God doesn’t always reveal His will in some situations, instead He wants us to step out and make a decision, and if it is not the right decision, well, if we are asking Him to “shut the door” if it is not His will, He most certainly will. He then concluded that, “Any time you complain, it is an insult to God.”

So no matter the situation you are going through, being grateful in everything is the thought process we should have every day! That was the part of it I needed to hear because I find it so easy to get lost in negative thought patterns. Of course you could always “rationalize” those cycles of thought patterns as just over analyzing or over thinking things, but, that is still no good excuse. So then, while it may be hard to be grateful about everything in life, especially when you can’t see the end from the beginning, it is most important to keep a positive outlook and only dwell on the positive. 

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drieth up the bones. Proverbs 17:22.

Nothing tends more to promote health of body and of soul than does a spirit of gratitude and praise. It is a positive duty to resist melancholy, discontented thoughts and feelings--as much a duty as it is to pray.--MH 251

God never leads His children otherwise than they would choose to be led, if they could see the end from the beginning and discern the glory of the purpose which they are fulfilling as co-workers with Him - MH 478,479. 

Many are unable to make definite plans for the future. Their life is unsettled. They cannot discern the outcome of affairs, and this often fills them with anxiety and unrest. Let us remember that the life of God's children in this world is a pilgrim life. We have not wisdom to plan our own lives. It is not for us to shape our future. “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.” Hebrews 11:8. {Pr 226.2}

If you have given yourself to God, to do His work, you have no need to be anxious for tomorrow. He whose servant you are, knows the end from the beginning. The events of tomorrow, which are hidden from your view, are open to the eyes of Him who is omnipotent. Pr 226.5

So then, since God never makes mistakes,  we can trust Him in every decision and in every stage of life that we go through, and I am learning that being grateful will really help the process!

If in everything in life we would give thanks, then everything in life would change for the better. 

This is all so much easier said than done, but, if all of that wasn’t enough, there is still another quote that I just heard today actually…it was something like: “It only takes one second of thinking about one negative thought to negatively impact the mind and body, but it takes 45 minutes of thinking about a positive thought to positively impact the mind and body.” Thats a little hard for me to believe, but nevertheless, it still only proves to show the power of positive thinking. 

It’s time to start a new cycle on life…