Thanksgiving - Philippians 4:6-7

Philippians 4:6-7 English Standard Version

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your mind in Christ Jesus.

Prayer is our most powerful weapon. We use prayer to not only speak to our Lord in times of need, but to praise Him, and thank Him! This month, I am choosing to write about giving thanks to our Lord, and things that we should be thankful for. With Thanksgiving on the way, I hope that this prepares me to be thankful for all of the blessings in my life.

In Paul’s letter to the Philippians he is telling them to not worry, but instead to pray about everything. He tells us to use three different forms of prayer that are equally important. Paul tells us to use supplication to ask God for things. Supplication is when we are praying for something specific like a good grade on a test, or guidance in our life. We must ask God in prayer for something or for help. Then, we must also praise Him and we will be in peace.

When asking for something, we then also need to be thankful. I feel like this is one of the hardest things we do everyday. We sometimes forget to be thankful, and I mean more than just the quick ‘Thank you God!!’. I know that I am very guilty of this. For awhile, I have been asking God for so much, plans for myself and plans for others, or for my loved ones to not be sick. But I have realized that when things seem to workout, when I learn what God is trying to tell me, I do not fall on my knees and pray in thanks as hard as I did begging for something. We need to give God the same amount, if not more, of us in prayer for thanks and praise as we do with supplication.

In my prayers, I try to follow the ACTS format: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication. I find that this is one of the best prayer formats that I have found, and covers all of our important prayers. We begin with adoring God, then confess our sins, give thanks, then ask for what we need or want. Using this formation helps me put my prayers into perspective, and I am much happier with myself after I pray because I go through every important piece of a prayer.

Giving thanks to our Lord is so fulfilling. After I thank God for anything, I feel like I have appropriately given Him credit for my happiness. I pray that everyday I can remember to accompany thanksgiving with my regular prayers of adoration, confession, and supplication.

Thought Questions:

How can we say thank you to God in the middle of busy lives?

How we can check ourselves and remind ourselves about thanking God everyday during our prayers?

How can we thank others, while keeping our focus on God, when they also have a part in our happiness?