Powerful Living Through Thankfulness

Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me. And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go. John 11:41-44

The One who has given Christians the greatest example of how to live is Jesus Christ. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.). Jesus Christ is our access to the Father’s presence because of His precious blood that washed us clean and made us righteous. And one of the characteristics that Jesus showed us is to always have a heart of gratitude. Jesus’ lifestyle of gratefulness to the Father clearly demonstrates one of the ways to live as a righteous Christian. We can see instances in Jesus’ life in which miracles were brought forth simply because He was thankful to the Father.

We can see one example in John 11:41-44:
Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me. And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

You can see that Lazarus was still dead when Jesus Christ thanked the Father for hearing His prayers. Jesus had complete trust and understanding of the Father’s faithfulness, which is why He thanked the Father with expectation in His heart that His prayers would be answered. He did not look into the situation that Lazarus was dead and beg the Father to hear His prayers. Instead, Jesus knew right away that in such a situation, God would show His faithfulness that He may be glorified before the people. That’s what Jesus was thankful for—not only for what the Father can do in such a situation but for knowing who He is before God, “…but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.”

Sometimes, you can be so terrified and overcome by the situations in your life that you forget who God is and who you are before Him. As you get distracted, the way you think changes from faith into doubt, and that is not what the Christianity lifestyle is about. But when you thank God in all situations, when you remain confident of being a son or daughter of God in Christ Jesus, you will begin to see heaven move in seemingly impossible situations.

This is what Jesus Christ teaches about powerful living through thankfulness. When you are thankful in all things, you can be sure that you are walking in the will of God (1 Thessalonian 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.), and He who is faithful in all things will surely not disappoint or fail you.