Uncommon Gratitude

“Give thanks to God no matter what circumstances you find yourself in.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Gratitude is the lens that helps us focus on the positive. It turns our not enough into abundance and hopelessness into expectation. It brings clarity to confusion and perspective to chaos. It comforts us and ushers in peace. Without it, we will miss the fullness that life has to offer.   

Many years ago, I visited South Africa with my church and worked with women in the last stages of AIDS. One project we facilitated was creating memory boxes—something each woman would fill with family recipes, prized possessions, drawings, and personalized letters to be passed on to their children when they died. My mind had been prepped for the trip, but my heart wasn’t prepared for the jolt it was about to experience.

I’d never seen such poverty. People were living in subhuman conditions, and it shocked me. When I met the women for the first time, I choked back tears. Their beautiful black faces were filled with joy as they stared back at me. I worried the nature of the project might create a gloomy and somber atmosphere, but I was wrong. They chose gratitude, and it encompassed the entire room. It started with one woman humming, and others joined in. Another kept the beat by pounding on the table. Within minutes, they were all on their feet singing in full voice.

I sat in my chair and wept as they sang the most beautiful hymns, praising God with every word. Their lives were being robbed by a cruel disease and their children’s fate unknown, yet they found reason to celebrate. That’s uncommon gratitude, and that moment has been burned into my memory.

There are a million reasons not to be grateful. Every day, we face new letdowns and rejections, more bad news, and scary situations. And too many of us are letting life pull us down. You can do hard things, and that includes finding uncommon gratitude in the mess.

Do you know what the most powerful weapon in your arsenal is? Praise. And here is why it works.

PRAISE BRINGS PERSPECTIVE 

“All day long I’ll praise and honor you, O God, for all that you have done for me” (Psalm 71:8, tlb)

When you thank God throughout your day, you are remembering His position in your life. And you’re letting God know that you recognize all the ways He has blessed you. But it does something for you, too.

Praise takes the focus off you and your struggles and places it on God and His goodness. So when the hard times come, your heart will be too full with gratitude to drown in discouragement.

PRAISE BRINGS PROXIMITY 

“Go through His gates, giving thanks; walk through His courts, giving praise. Offer Him your gratitude and praise His holy name” (Psalm 100:4, VOICE).

Praise brings you closer to God. Think about the connection you feel during worship. So often, it brings me to tears because I feel His presence thick around me.  Or maybe it’s those moments when you’re on your knees thanking God for intervening that make you feel closer than ever. It’s in His presence that our gratitude is activated.

PRAISE BRINGS POSITIVITY 

“O my soul, bless God. From head to toe, I’ll bless his holy name! O my soul, bless God, don’t forget a single blessing! He forgives your sins—every one. He heals your diseases—every one. He redeems you from hell—saves your life! He crowns you with love and mercy—a paradise crown. He wraps you in goodness—beauty eternal” (Psalm 103:1–5, MSG).

Praise is good for your soul because it ushers in a positive outlook on life. Instead of complaining about problems, spend the day recalling the goodness of God. Name five ways God has moved in your life, and then try to be the same ol’ negative Nellie. You can’t. Praise changes things for the better!

When you shift your focus, you’ll become a more positive person because you’ll have fresh reminders of amazing God-moments from your life. And that will make it easier to release your concerns into His capable hands again. Praise is a negativity buster and a gratitude generator at the same time.

Praise creates uncommon gratitude—pure and simple. Let’s dig a little deeper to see how it can also deepen your faith. Gratitude is essential to navigating the storms in life.

PRAISE DEEPENS YOUR FAITH 

Gratitude and faith go hand in hand. That means if you’re a Christ follower, then gratitude should be a natural side effect. But instead, so many of us are walking around defeated and discouraged. If you’re feeling hopeless, unable to see the good in life, chances are your faith and gratitude are buried under a pile of life’s mess.

I want to remind you that messy times are the most important times to ignite your gratitude. Doing so doesn’t discount your pain or ignore your concern, but there are real benefits.

It sticks it to the Enemy, who is trying to take you out of the game. It squashes the temptation to become self-centered. And it keeps your heart tender so you can be the salt-seasoning that flavors the world. Yes, gratitude is that powerful.

But just how can we be grateful for things like cancer? Or divorce? How do we find gratitude when we lose a loved one? When times are tough and nothing seems to make sense. . .when it feels like your prayers for healing and restoration are bouncing off the ceiling. . .when circumstances are not going the way you planned. . .your faith needs a powerful boost. Uncommon gratitude can do it.

I can think of several times where I’ve had to pray some thing like this: “God, I can’t see You right now, but You promise to never leave me, so I know You’re there. I trust that You are allowing this only for my benefit and Your glory.” Sometimes I prayed that in strength and sometimes in tears. Others times I was angry at God for allowing what He allowed, and I had to humble myself before Him. But every time I prayed it, something shifted in me.

We aren’t thanking God for allowing cancer or death or pain. Instead, we are showing gratitude because we know God is bigger than what we are facing. It’s in the hard and hopeless places we have the perfect opportunity to deepen our faith. By doing so, He will sustain us.

Here’s how I know that. Colossians 2:7, TLB, says, “Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all he has done.” Exercising uncommon gratitude reveals the depth of your faith. And it creates deeper fellowship with your Creator.

Will you choose to thank God when life is overwhelming and hard? Will you find reasons to be grateful when struggling to catch your breath? Thank Him for being God. Thank Him for promising to never leave you alone to figure life out by yourself. And thank Him that He will grow your faith through it.

Let’s be women of uncommon gratitude. Let’s develop it through praise and watch it ignite our faith. Let’s not be seasonal or situational with our gratitude but instead be grateful to God no matter what. You have everything it takes to be uncommon. Now choose it.

LIVE UNCOMMON 

Lord, thank You for showing me how vital gratitude is to growing my faith. I want to be all in! Would You please give me the spiritual eyes and ears to find Your goodness in my everyday life, as well as in those times where darkness is thick? Sometimes it’s hard to look past my circumstances and see where You are. Remind me to praise You throughout my day so we stay connected rather than letting the hard times pull me under. Help me focus not on what was lost, but rather on what I have left. And help my attitude of gratitude be a model for others who need to know You are good all the time. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Excerpt was taken from Uncommon by Carey Scott with permission from Barbour Publishing.