Being Thankful

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I can speak from personal experience when I say that praise is a force. We are a three part being, spirit, soul and body.  We are in contact with both the natural and the spiritual realm. This allows us to access the more powerful realm of the Spirit and bring God into our natural circumstances, changing the very atmosphere.

I have been in hospital rooms with individuals who were in critical condition, you could feel heaviness and darkness in the atmosphere and in those times as we began to praise God and magnify Him the darkness left and His light and presence came in.
This is the atmosphere where the miraculous can take place.

You can do this in your home, in your car wherever you are - you see, praise is a force  and it can also be used as a weapon. A weapon against an enemy you cannot see but it is real and is trying to work against you. Praise elevates you into a place with God where tactics of confusion, anxiety, and depression cannot touch you.

Praise is a force, it is a weapon and it is also a fortress. The Psalmist David wrote the Name of the LOrd is a strong tower the righteous run into it and they are saved.

When you, out of your own mouth say the name of Jesus and magnify Him, the power in His Name encompasses you like a shield, it protects you. I think of times I have been in dangerous situations and I spoke the Name of Jesus and I came out untouched. You see, that moment wasn't the first time I had spoken His name, I could speak that name in faith because I had spent time magnifying His name before, I had built a strong confidence in the power of His name, and you can too!

This verse in Thessalonians that we started out with Paul wrote as part of his final instruction before ending his first letter to the church, he was listing solid life lessons for us to live by.

Have you ever met or known someone who is simply happy all the time?  It seems like life can't drag them down. Even when negative circumstances come up they seem to stand resilient to experiencing disappointment and in the end they come out on top.  This is the reason, because they choose to live their lives based on verses like this.

Notice the last part of verse 18 says "...For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  what is God's will?  That we give thanks in all circumstances!  We have a lot to be thankful for. We live in a free country where we are safe and secure. We have a Savior that became our sacrifice in order to give us eternal life.  And we have a Father that loves us so much that He was willing to offer His only Son for our redemption.

Most of us have families that we'll be spending this Thursday with, eating lots of food, watching movies and football (football in my families house) and sharing laughs and love with those we consider near and dear.  We have much to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I call you blessed,

- Jen.