Thanking God

Very often we are exactly like those nine lepers.  When anyone tossed them a coin, no doubt they would say Thank You.  But when Jesus gave them their health, which was worth more than all the money in the world, they said nothing.  So we often remember to say ‘Thank you’ for little things but forget all about the big.  We say ‘Thank you’ when someone passes us the butter or spread during a meal, but are we as quick to thank God for giving us life and for all the good things that make us happy and keep us well?

Think for a moment of the things that make us happy.  Home, games, outings, friends and being well and healthy so that we can enjoy them all.  And then there are the things which keep us well: food, shelter, sleep.  We should remember to thank God for all these things.  In particular, we should thank God for our food by saying Grace at meals.  Before the meal we can say, “Bless, O Lord, these gifts to our use and ourselves to your service”; and after the meal, “For what we have received, O Lord, make us truly thankful”.  You can also use your own words, which could be very personal to you and the occasion; for example: “Thank you God for life and family and friends and a lovely birthday tea”.

In our morning prayers we should thank God for his goodness to us all through our life, for the blessings of the Christian Faith and for all that Jesus has done for us to save our souls.  In our evening prayers we should think over the happenings of the day for which we ought to be grateful.  If you think hard you will probably have quite a list of things.  Then with these in mind, say ‘Thank you’ to God in your own words.