Overflow

 

For Americans November is our annual reminder to be thankful. All month long we seek to develop an attitude of gratitude in remembrance of Thanksgiving. But for Christians every day is Thanksgiving Day. The Lord teaches us through His Word that we are to “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) Give thanks in ALL circumstances? Even the painful ones? It’s easy to give thanks when all is going well in life but it’s a whole other thing when all is not going well. How do we cultivate a heart of thankfulness that can overflow with thanksgiving in the midst of suffering and sorrow?

Colossians 2:6-7 (NIV) says this:   So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. 

The first step in cultivating a heart that overflows with thankfulness in all circumstances is receiving Jesus Christ as Lord.  Do you know Jesus the Christ? Is He the Sovereign Lord of your life? Have you surrendered your kingdom and submitted to live in His kingdom with Him as your King? Living under the authority of our good and gracious King Jesus has the potential to help us navigate the difficulties and sorrows of life with a thankful heart.

But we don’t just receive Him as Lord and then go on our own way. We continue to live our lives IN HIM each and every day. How? By being rooted and built up in Him which is what works to strengthen our faith in Him. This speaks to growing in the knowledge of Jesus through consistent time in God’s Word and consistent time with the people of God. It speaks of being rooted in the Word and being built up in the Word. We are “built up”  and strengthened in our faith by growing in obedience as we learn to trust Him. And we learn to trust Him as we see His faithfulness both in seasons of suffering and seasons of joy. 

As we are rooted in Christ, as our faith is being strengthened, as we are being built up in maturity, our hearts begin to overflow with thankfulness in all seasons. Why? Because our hearts are filled with Jesus Christ our Lord. And when our hearts our filled with Him, He is just too big to be contained and we overflow with gratitude for who He is and what He has done and continues to do in the midst of the messiness of life.

So let’s cultivate a heart of thankfulness all throughout the year, by being rooted and built up in Christ! 

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. (Ps. 107:1 NIV)