Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart --

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Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,… singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Col 3:16 ESV

Have you ever thought about the subtle differences between “gratitude” and “thanksgiving”? Lately, I have been doing just that…somewhat because I’m a word-lover, and also because I often consciously gravitate to one over the other.

As Webster"‘s Dictionary (1828) says,

Gratitude is an emotion of the heart, excited by a favor or benefit received; a sentiment of kindness or good will towards a benefactor; thankfulness.

Thanksgiving is the expression of gratitude; acknowledgment of a favor.

So simply put, we could say,

…gratitude is a matter of the heart;
…thanksgiving is a matter of the lips.

And our God is worthy of both —

… a heart filled with gratitude to Him Who is our ultimate Benefactor in ALL things in this life and in the next;
… lips that sing His praise with joyful thanksgiving for benefits received day by day while we walk upon this earth. Every day is a gift.

As I was mulling this over this week, I came across a reference to author George MacDonald’s three grand essentials without which “no meaningful life can be lived”:

  1. someone to love

  2. something to do

  3. something to hope for

And these three are worth our grateful thanks to God this Thanksgiving! So let’s think about these in our own lives.

May I ask you, dear friend?

  1. Who do you love? And who loves you?
    Thank God for these precious people in your life.

    We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19 ESV

    “The love of God is the sublimest gratitude.”

  2. What do you love to do? What are you really good at?
    Thank God that He expresses His creativity through you on this earth.

    For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 NLT

  3. What are you hoping for? Trusting God for? In this life? Ultimately in the next?
    Ask God to clarify your hopes and expectations…then thank Him for His perspective in all things.

    I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 NLT

The other morning after days of these thoughts, I woke up with a beautiful song on my mind and heart. I think it pulls it all together.

May you be blessed as you sing and thank the Lord with a grateful heart!