Signs of a Thankful Woman

Thanksgiving is coming quickly!! When it gets this close, it can be a struggle for me to keep my mind focused on blessings. My to do list grows quickly, plans must be finalized, shopping must be done, schedules coordinated and the attitude of gratitude is often the first thing to slip away.

A recent Bible study from Good Morning Girls had some great thoughts to put our thankfulness to the test. Thankfulness is not just a fleeting whispered 'thank you' to the wind....it is a lifestyle where our blessings are acknowledged, shared and our attitudes changed which results in action.

Here is a portion from the study about how to check our thankfulness.

How can we know if we are thankful women?

1. Do we often think of all of God’s mercies and graces in our lives? Is his praise often in our lips? This is a sign of thankful hearts.

2. Is our love for God growing? His generosity toward us should move us from loving his gifts to loving him as Giver.

3. Are we good stewards? Thankfulness leads a woman to be careful with the gifts she has received. A thankful woman is careful with her physical possessions, with her body, and with her family and friends.

4. Are we obedient? The truly thankful understand what it is they have been saved from. This gratitude for the greatest of all gifts leads us to follow Jesus and do as he commands.

5. Are our complaints fading? A thankful heart is less likely to complain in frustrating circumstances or get angry in hard times. It is easy to be thankful when skies are blue and the sun is shining, but it is another story when the storm rolls in. The person who can praise God in the midst of pain, disappointment and hardship has learned thankfulness.

I am convicted as I think about these things. Thankfulness is not something that just grows in my life. It must be cultivated by joyful awareness of all that God is and has done for us. We must persist in being thankful.

When we can see no reason for praise—we must believe in the divine love and goodness, and sing in the darkness.
- J.R. Miller

God calls us to be thankful because it is right. It is right to praise our God but it is also for our benefit. A thankful heart cannot lose. It makes our bright days brighter and out hard days easier to handle. It lifts our countenance towards heaven and from there comes our hope, our joy, our salvation, and our eternal home.

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