State of Being
Thankfulness has been something that the Lord has been really highlighting to me in my personal life lately. I have been convicted about how I have been so caught up in what I have going on and the business of life that I have neglected to pause and be grateful for the those around me.
As I was reading this past week in Colossians I came across this verse that spoke to this.
And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Colossians 3:15
In light of all that God has been dealing with me on the last three words jumped off the page at me. In the context that we find this scripture Paul is addressing relationships and how Christians are supposed to handle them. He is directing us to walk in humility, gentleness, and patience. He instructs us to forgive even if we are justified in our response. He then makes the statement that we as the body of Christ should walk in peace and unity with one another. Finally he says to be thankful. It is a statement that is easy to look right over, but I believe that this is the key to walking in the right way concerning our relationship.
The Greek word for thankful here expresses three words that I think are vital for understanding the full meaning of what Paul is saying here. The word means to be thankful, grateful and appreciative. Let's look at these individually:
Thankful- this word describes a person's attitude toward good fortune or blessing. To be thankful starts with your perspective, how you view the people and possessions around you. When we look at perspective there are two competing view points; comparison and contentment. Comparison will look at others to determine if we are better or worse than someone else. Does what I have measure up to that person across the street? Is my job as esteemed as the other parents at the school? Contentment is rooted in the understanding that God is my source for who I am and what I have, it is being satisfied with what God has given me.
Grateful- this means we identify the person who helped us or treated us kindly. This realization produces an emotional response towards them. This identification begins to tie us in a bond with others. Gratitude will allow us to see beyond others flaws and focus on the positive that they bring to the table. This illumination invokes a response within us leading to the final word.
Appreciative- this is the word for the expression of the thankfulness and the gratitude that has been produced inside of us. This is where we make a relational transaction and express our changed perspective and emotional response within. Appreciation is a verbal or physical acknowledgement of what has culminated in the realization of thankfulness and the emotional response of gratitude.
This really hit me as I reflected on my family tree. My father was not raised in a Christian home, he got saved in his thirties and God worked some amazing things in his life, delivering him from drugs and alcohol. As I reflected on my childhood and being brought up in a home that was stable and centered on the Lord. It stood in stark contrast to the stories of his childhood, and the patterns of behavior that he was raised in. My dad changed our family tree when he chose to give his life to God. I am grateful to the Lord that he changed my dad's life, I am grateful to my dad that he obeyed God's call. I am truly grateful because I get the chance to continue the legacy.