The Weekly Gratitude Project
“No matter what happens, always be thankful,
1 Thessalonians 5:18 TLB
for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
“Oh, what a miserable person I am!
Romans 7:24 NLT
Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?”
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by life? Miserable? Sinful? Depressed? I’m guessing we all have at one time or another. Even the apostle Paul declared himself to be a “miserable person” in Romans 7:24 (NLT). This world has a way of bringing us down, and it’s easy to give in to feelings of despair. But this is not how God wants us to live! Jesus said that as His followers we should be filled with overflowing joy and peace (John 15:11; John 16:33). So what’s the secret? How do we break free from the sorrow of this world so we can experience the peace and joy of heaven? Paul asks this question in Romans 7:24. And in Romans 7:25, he gives us the answer:
“Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Romans 7:25 NLT
The answer is in Jesus Christ. He came to set us free and save us from sin and death. But let’s not overlook the first part of that verse: “Thank God!” I don’t believe that’s just a flippant saying the way it can be today. Rather, I read it as a directive: The way to overcome despair is through gratitude for what God has done for us.
In the United States, we celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November. So I thought it would be a good time to focus on gratitude. My inspiration for the next few posts is a guided journal titled The Weekly Gratitude Project, which challenges readers to intentionally spend time each week expressing thanks to God in order to grow a grateful heart and a stronger faith. I will include some reflections from this journal as we undertake our own gratitude project for the next three weeks. As we spend time giving thanks to God, we can’t help but focus more on Him and less on ourselves. And as gratitude becomes a habit, we begin to notice His blessings more and more.
“You are encouraged to plant your roots deep into the wonder of God’s blessings, the steadfastness of His love, and the truth of His faithfulness.”
The Weekly Gratitude Project
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
John 1:5 ESV
Before we begin, I should confess that I am not a good example to follow in this. I hate to admit it, but I am pretty bad at gratitude. My mathematical brain tends to obsess over problems that need to be solved, and when I can’t come up with a solution, I get frustrated and overwhelmed. If I’m not careful, I can find myself in a deep hole of anxiety and depression, wondering how to climb out of it. Have you ever been there? If so, don’t give up hope. Here’s how one woman, struggling after the loss of her father, found a way out of the darkness:
“I felt alone, angry, and stuck in my grief. Even though it is my habit to pray every morning, I found it hard to go to God in prayer during this time. One day, I decided I had to do something to break myself out of this pattern. I sat quietly and simply said, ‘Thank you, God.’ The next day I thanked God again. With each new day, my time with God grew longer, as did my list of thanks and praise. Each time I expressed gratitude to God, I felt like light was breaking through the darkness that surrounded me. As my spirit of thanksgiving grew, God’s light overcame my despair.”
Amy Graham, “Overcoming Despair”
As I am learning, the key is focus. We have to learn to see our struggles and circumstances from a new point of view. Rather than zooming in on the problems themselves, we need to step back and see the big picture. Difficulties are opportunities for spiritual growth if we are willing to see them that way. Every problem has the potential to transform us for the better by leading us closer to God.
In some of the math textbooks I’ve used in my classes, the authors wisely renamed the homework problem sets as “exercises” to remind the students of their purpose. We can do the same thing. Rather than seeing our struggles as problems to be solved, we need to learn to see them as faith exercises. Once we can do that, we can learn to be grateful for them. And we can learn to fix our eyes on the unseen things of heaven (2 Corinthians 4:18).
“Even behind prison walls, Paul found gratitude a key ingredient to a hopeful perspective and a happy life. Not because it took away his chains but because it changed the way he saw them . . . . gratitude is a new window you can use to see the world.”
The Weekly Gratitude Project
“Sometimes it feels like our anxious minds are the control center of our bodies. When our hearts are stuck on what brings us down, they keep us down — emotionally and spiritually. Gratitude is a way back up. A step toward God. A path to healing our hearts.”
The Weekly Gratitude Project
This week’s Scripture passages challenge us to shift our focus from the things that weigh us down by casting our cares on the Lord. I have also included some reflections and writing prompts from The Weekly Gratitude Project that have helped me to do this. When we face problems we don’t know how to solve, we can learn to turn them over to the One who does, trusting Him to use them for good in our lives. As we do this more and more, our faith grows and our heart is healed. We begin a journey toward transcendent peace and unshakeable joy . . .
A journey that begins with gratitude.
Reflections and writing prompts from The Weekly Gratitude Project:
~ “Can you think of ways your heart needs to heal?
Are you battling discouragement, disappointment, or discontent?”
~ “What are you fixated on right now?
Maybe it’s something that you want, or something that you lost.
Write what’s on your heart.”
~ “Take a deep breath and refocus your attention on God.
Write about who He is, what He’s done for you,
what you love about Him, and why you’re grateful.”
~ “Name three things you’re grateful for today.
Then, set a timer for two minutes and focus only on those things.
How did this practice make you feel?”
~ “How might practicing an exercise like this regularly help your heart to heal?”
“How long must I worry and feel sad in my heart all day?
Psalm 13:2,5 NCV
. . . My heart is happy because you saved me.”
References:
- Graham, Amy. “Overcoming Despair.” The Upper Room, vol. 88, no. 4, September/October 2022, p. 62.
- The Weekly Gratitude Project: A Challenge to Journal, Reflect, and Grow a Grateful Heart. Zondervan, 2020.
Images:
- Succulent featured image by Eugenio Cuppone from Pixabay (edited)
- Cactus image by MartinaFotos from Pixabay (edited)
- Candle image by lil artsy: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-hand-holding-lit-white-pillar-candle-1721096/ (edited)
- Potted Succulent image by Eugenio Cuppone from Pixabay
- Book image by workingDOG from Pixabay (edited)
About The Author
Christa
My vision for Wondertakings was to create a devotional blog for "nerdy" Christians like me. I do believe, as Socrates said, that wisdom begins in wonder. So I love to read or watch anything that inspires wonder and figure out what I can learn from it. I view it all through a Christian lens. I believe that God can and does speak through many sources in many ways, even if those speaking are not aware of it. I am not an expert in theology or religious studies. My goal with this blog is simply to share what I've learned as a fellow student and sinner in the Christian walk. My hope and my prayer is that by doing so I may be able to help someone else. In Deuteronomy 5:33 (NLT), we are told: "Stay on the path that the Lord your God has commanded you to follow. Then you will live long and prosperous lives. . . ." So in the words of Moses (and Spock), live long and prosper, my friends!