first, i thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. [romans 1:8]
presence leads to gratefulness.
when we spend time in the presence of God, we grow in gratefulness to the gifts that he has given us–this overflowing from abiding leads to expressions of worship:
paul often mentions his thankfulness for his fellow saints as he opens his letters:
i do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, [ephesians 1:16]
i give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, [1 corinthians 1:4]
i thank my God in all my remembrance of you, [philippians 1:3]
we give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, [1 thessalonians 1:2]
paul isn’t just thankful privately, he doesn’t just write down what he is thankful for in a ‘gratitude journal’ for only his use–he thanks the source of his blessing of fellow believers: ‘i thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you’ and he writes publicly of his thankfulness, praising the Lord, and encouraging all of the readers of the letter.
paul wrote these letters that had to travel by boat and foot to his readers, and it took days and weeks and months for them to arrive. today, we have been given the gift to instantly communicate with one another.
when you are done with your quiet time today, take time first to thank the Lord for the blessing of fellowship of co-workers, friends and fellow heirs in Christ, here and around the world. then, take out your phone or a pen, and write a message to them, like paul, tell those whom you love of your gratefulness for the gospel influence they have had on you because of their faith in Jesus–let our inboxes be filled with the encouragement of Christ today!
~ce