“and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.” Colossians 1:12 NIV
Reflection: what does having a grateful heart mean to you?
Every year at thanksgiving, we have an opportunity to do some self reflection on this topic of being grateful. To consider whether we have a grateful heart, and how we show that. But before we answer that, we should probably define what “grateful” really means. If we look at the online dictionary, it defines grateful as “warmly or deeply appreciative of kindness or benefits received; thankful:” It is deeper than words; it is being in a state of appreciation, or of thankfulness. The word grateful originates in the word “grace”, which means to receive a blessing we do not deserve. It is in this understanding, that we are receiving something we don’t deserve that we become grateful.
Paul wrote to Colossians something that perhaps can better illustrate this idea of being grateful. And we will see that being grateful has several components to it – 1) WHAT to be grateful for, 2) WHOM to be grateful to, and 3) HOW to express the gratitude. Starting with 1) WHAT, we see “qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Colossians 1:12b-14 NIV. There is a lot there to process, but it is very important that we do, so that we can try to grasp and understand what it is that God has done for us, understand the reason to be grateful. And, then 2) to whom should we be grateful? Who has bestowed upon us all these blessings? We read ““and giving joyful thanks to the Father” Colossians 1:12a NIV. This was the will and the gift of the Father, whom our gratitude is to be directed towards.
And then finally, 3) how do we express gratitude? We read again “and giving joyful thanks to the Father” Colossians 1:12a NIV. Now, this is very interesting, right? You see here a double positive, “joyful” and “thanks”. And the meaning is a lot more than simply saying “thanks”. Because a heart that has grasped the gift, the blessing becomes joyful. It is impossible not to. So, joyful thanks is more like “thanksgiving”; A state of being grateful. Because, the more and more we understand how underserved we have received God’s mercy and grace, the deeper appreciation and joy it brings. (Just for completeness, mercy means not receiving the punishment we do deserve.)
So today, if you find yourself struggling with being thankful, because of all the struggles of this world, read Colossians 1:12-14 a few times. Meditate on it, and let it sink in, all the way to your heart. What God has done for you. Let the words melt your heart, to receive the joy of the Lord. Then, with a joyful heart, give thanks to our Father. You will probably also find it easier to be thankful to people around you.