GodsToolbox_blog
    When we hear thanksgiving, we all think of the same thing: turkey, football, and Black Friday. But that’s not what we’re talking about here. Thanksgiving is our third way to pray. Thanking God for things in our lives is something we hear all the time. But usually it seems to be a means to an end. We thank God for everything so that we don’t feel bad to ask more of Him. What if I told you that we should pray thanksgiving to God without anything else? That it’s good just to thank God? That’s it. So why should we pray a prayer of thanksgiving?
Psalm 138 gives us 8 motives for prayer…
1. Because God’s love is unfailing [vs 2]
  • God is faithful when other people aren’t.
  • He has never given up on you, even when others have.
2. Because God answers you when you call [vs 3]
  • That’s a PROMISE (Jeremiah 33:3)
  • God doesn’t get bored with you; it doesn’t matter if you bring the same thing to Him every day.
  • He doesn’t just listen; He answers.
3. Because God gave you His word [vs 4]
  • He preserved His words for 2,000 years just so He could speak to you
4. Because God’s ways are good and glorious [vs 5]
  • He is rich in love, slow to anger.
  • He hold it all together (Colossians 1:17)
5. Because God is a friend to the lowly [vs 6]
  • He’s a father to the fatherless and a defender of widows (Psalm 68:5)
  • God wants to have a personal relationship with you and call you “friend” (John 15:5)
6. Because God saved your life [vs 7]
  • There is no valley in life too deep that can smother your salvation in Christ (Psalm 23:4)
7. Because God protects and saves you from your enemies [vs 7]
  • God deflects anger, punishment, and judgment from you on a daily basis.
  • Now, if God is for you, who can be against you? (Romans 8:31)
8. Because God vindicates you [vs 8]
  • We have assurance from God that HE will have the final word and judgment, not us.
  • God’s vindication is better than your revenge.
     Living it out: There are four ways you can live out a prayer of thanksgiving:
1) Make a list of times God helped you through a problem.
2) Make a list of the good things God has given you.
3) Make a list of ways you can thank God OUTWARDLY.
4)Thank God every day.
     This week, remember how good God is and how much good He has done for us. Then thank Him for it.