Count Your Blessings! A secret to happiness is prayerfully counting your blessings, while offering thanks to God. When you’re having a bad day, take a few minutes and start thanking God for all the blessings He’s given to you. You’ll find that your focus turns from things that make you sad, to things that make you happy. Rejoice In The Lord Paul says, “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord (Phil. 3:1). And later in the same epistle he says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (Phil 4:4)! God wants you to be a happy, rejoicing person. Although you’ll suffer as Christians, and life isn’t always going to be perfect (2 Tim. 3:12), God wants you to rejoice. Rejoice By Praying All The Time The first step toward rejoicing all the time is praying all the time, constantly talking to God throughout the day. Sometimes you may pause to pray in a formal way, and other times you might speak to God in a single sentence while hurriedly moving from one task to another. Pray About Everything That Bothers You Although it’s good to be concerned about the things that effect our lives, we shouldn’t be anxious. We’re not to have undue worldly care about the things of this life — we can’t let worldly care control us. To accomplish this, Paul tells us to, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7). And Peter, communicating these things in a different manner, says, “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you” (1 Pet. 5:6-7). God wants us to pray about the things that bother us. But, He also wants us to deal with these things in a manner that’s befitting of Christians, who place their trust in Him. We continually pray about the things that bother us, entrusting them into God’s hands, depending on Him to deal with them according to His will. Like Jesus, who suffered for you, leaving you an example when He was treated harshly and crucified, “entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (1 Pet. 2:23). If you prayerfully entrust yourself to God, you’ll rejoice while experiencing the difficulties of life. In Everything Give Thanks Not only can you incorporate thanksgiving into your prayers as you express your desires and concerns to God, you can also offer up prayers wherein all you do is offer thanks. When I’m going through my day, and especially when things go right, I constantly offer up one sentence prayers to thank God. If it’s a really good day, I might thank God close to a hundred times. And even if it’s a really bad day, I still thank God several times a day for giving me a great life, and blessing us so much. Prayerfully casting your cares on God while offering thanks for your blessings, results in a happy and joyful life — you’ll rejoice in the Lord. Count Your Blessings Are you ever burdened with a load of care? So, amid the conflicts, whether great or small, Count your blessings, name them one by one; It Really Works
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