During the Thanksgiving holiday, our signboard said:
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THANK GOD! |
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Thank God!
Why do we say that? Many times those words exit our mouths along with a sigh of relief….
Thank God! We say those words a lot. Sometimes it’s in response to trivial circumstances. Sometimes we express relief over very trying and serious circumstances.
But sometimes we don’t even use the word God. We might say things like “Thank Goodness”… “Thank Heaven”… “Thank my Lucky Stars”… There’s a lot of thanking going on, but are we really thinking about God???
Thanks, God!
If we just say “Thank God“, we’re not expressing gratitude. But what if we really said (and meant), “Thanks, God“??? That minor grammatical change requires a major change in perspective. Do good things really come from God? Or do good things come from luck and a mixture of hard work, skill, and persistence? Does God supply our every need or do we make our own fortune?
Ask and it Will Be Given
Jesus said a lot about prayer, and about praying for good things. Click on this Drop Down box to see a few of them…
Good Things
- “It will be given… the door will be opened…”
Matthew 7:7
- “Do not worry, ‘What shall we eat?’ “
Matthew 6:31
- “Ask whatever you wish, and it will be given…”
John 15:7
But along with each of these promises, He also said some things about our relationship with Him. Click on this Drop Down box to see these promises in context…
Relationship
- “It will be given… the door will be opened…”
- “For everyone who asks, seeks, knocks…”
- “Do not worry, ‘What shall we eat?’ “
- “But seek first His Kingdom and righteousness.“
- “Ask whatever you wish, and it will be given…”
- “If you remain in me…“
Thanks, God- You Know Me
There’s a condition to receiving good things from God. Something has to be in place before you can truly say “Thanks, God!” In order to feel the warmth and light of God’s love, we need to be in relationship with Him. 
God isn’t a lucky rabbit’s foot and prayer isn’t like rubbing a genie’s bottle. When we say “Thanks, God!” we’re responding to a relationship, not simply reacting to good things. God didn’t just form us from the dust and walk away. He actually loves us and wants us to love Him back. He wants us to recognize that we depend on Him for everything and that we can “crawl into His lap” and ask Him for anything that builds that relationship.
So when something good happens, don’t just breath a sigh of relief and say, “Oh thank God.” Instead, pray and say “Thank You, God!” Thank you for forgiving me. Thank You for providing for my every need. Thank You for loving me!
Thanks, God!
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