Weekly Impressions - Trust Born of Thankfulness

After three hundred thankful things that I have written through the course of daily life over the past year, I have found myself associating new feelings with the things that I have written thanks for.  It has made it much easier to have a thankful attitude - and I’m a much happier person and more enjoyable to be around because of it.  I realized, however, that though I am thankful for the things around me, I am not as thankful for things in my marriage.  This is why I decided to write my next 100 thankful things focused on my marriage - and I can’t wait to reap the benefits.

As I read over the past five thankful things I wrote this last week, I found those thankful feelings arising in relation to my marriage, and was rather glad.  It is a very useful tool to read over the past thankful things I have written - and if you’ve joined me in this venture and have written your own thankful things, I would encourage you to read over past ones.  Especially if you’re currently struggling with feeling thankful.  It reminds me of God’s work in my life, and of the joy of being His child.

That is why I have tried to be very intentional in writing about how God relates to a thankful thing.  Whether in His provision, or timing, or love, etc., it is tantamount to see Him in each of my thankful things, as that is where my true joy and satisfaction is found.  That God whom I am so thankful to, is sovereign over every area and aspect of my life.  No matter what I am going through, I can know and trust that it is in His hands for not only His glory, but also for the good of His children.  With each thankful thing that I write and relate to Him, this truth is driven more fully into my heart.  It is an incredibly relieving and joy-filled experience.

I have found this a little harder to do in my marriage.  Not because God is less involved, but because it is easy for my focus to close in upon my husband and what he is doing.  It can be easy to be thankful only to my husband, and not to God.  This is dangerous - my husband is not my god, and isn’t worthy of God’s praise.  That doesn’t mean that I can’t be thankful to my husband (how damaging not to be!) - just not thankful only to my husband.  Ultimately, my thankfulness is due unto God.  

This revelation, too, is an important one for my marriage; the more I am thankful to God for the things in my marriage, the more I trust Him.  If I am thankful only to my husband, then I start to place my trust only in my husband - and if you’ve been in any relationship very long, you know that the other person is not perfect, and will betray your trust (willingly or unwittingly) at some point.  

God never will.  Even when we don’t understand it, we can rest in the knowledge that Romans 8:28-31 imparts to us:  “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.  For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.  What then shall we say to these things?  If God is for us, who is against us?”