We all know we’re supposed to be thankful for what we have. But how many of us actually FEEL thankful the majority of the time? And when we realize we’re not being thankful, how do we change course, and start appreciating life again?

Most success coaches would tell you if you want to be thankful, start making a list of all the things you’re thankful for. Unfortunately, that activity is not really enough to help you consistently walk in an attitude of thanksgiving.

Cultivating a lifestyle of thankfulness is so much more than making a list of things you’re thankful for. Because even if you could come up with a long list of everything you’re thankful for in this realm, you’re still focusing on your current, temporal, earthly state of affairs in order to take inventory of what you have.

And what if something happens to the things you have? Or even the relationships you currently enjoy? Can you still be thankful? We know the theologically correct answer is, “Yes,” but what we actually feel when our relationships and things are taken away would suggest otherwise!

Truth is that everything you have in this realm, including your friends, your family, and your stuff is subject to change! And when you no longer possess the things you once had, most people struggle finding joy and fall subject to their negative feelings.

Let me say it again. Everything in this life will one day fade away. So how can you walk in an attitude of thankfulness ALL the time even when life is so volatile?

Check out what the Apostle Paul had to say about being thankful. In his letter to the Ephesians Paul reveals to us the key to sustainable gratefulness.

Look at what he says in Ephesians 1:3:

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.“

The King James translation says it this way; “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” (Emphasis added).

The word for “blessed,” and “blessing” in this sentence comes from the same root word meaning “to speak well of,” “to thank,” “to praise,” or “to wish well.”

What Paul was saying is that when you realize that God speaks well of YOU, invokes a benediction over YOU, and praises YOU, because of Christ’s supernatural life that has been consecrated unto you, you will bless, praise, thank, and speak well of God!

I know so many people who speak so poorly of God, especially when their circumstances take a turn for the worse, or the devil steals away their temporal possessions. People have been told that God allows suffering in their lives in order to teach them a lesson, so when that “lesson” comes, they naturally get angry with God.

But Paul writes and tells us that when we truly understand how God has blessed us through the sanctifying work of Jesus, you won’t be able to stop blessing God, and thanking him for what he has done!

Right now, if you’re in Christ, God is blessing you, speaking well of you, and THANKING you that you have received him. Can you believe it? That God thanks us for having received him? God actually appreciates that you have welcomed him into your life!

You might be asking, “So, Krissy, should I make a ‘Thankful list’ or not?”

Well, if you are going to make a list, just remember to include THE MOST IMPORTANT thing you possess at the top of it – CHRIST IN YOU!