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REMEMBER AND BE THANKFUL
by Pastor Leon Fontaine

Being thankful is synonymous with being happy.

People who make it a daily practice to be thankful for all that God has done for them have a way of attracting quality relationships and excellent opportunities into their life. They exude an uplifting and infectious attitude that is inspiring to others and seem to handle problems with greater ease and happiness.

Then there are those who have lost their attitude of thankfulness, or perhaps never developed one, and repel others with their cynical attitude and negative predictions. They struggle to keep good friends and seem to always be creating unfortunate circumstances for themselves and others. They mistakenly believe they would be more happy and thankful if only they had a reason to be, and they fail to understand it’s not circumstance, but rather attitude, that sets them apart from those who are happier.

In reality, there are plenty of reasons for everyone to be unhappy in this world, but many people choose a better route by deciding to develop an attitude of thankfulness.

Here are a few more thoughts about thankfulness:

1. Thankfulness keeps peace in your life. Good fortune does not always translate into a peaceful, happy existence. In fact, the Bible warns about guarding your heart in times of prosperity because that is when it becomes easy to take things for granted, become proud and lose an attitude of thankfulness, which ultimately leads to poor choices and unhappiness. Regardless of the season you’re in, a thankful attitude and an ability to convey thankfulness will lead to lasting joy.


2. Everything in your life that is good comes from God. Develop, on purpose, an attitude of thankfulness by expressing gratitude each day to Him for the good things in your life, whether it’s your health, your family, career, opportunities or whatever else God has blessed you with. When you fail to practice an attitude of being thankful, you run the risk of gravitating towards negative topics in life and begin thinking, dwelling and talking about all that’s wrong in the world. But when you practice giving thanks to God for the goodness in your life, you won't become an unhappy pessimist because you’ll be in habit of practicing thankfulness and will automatically retain your joy.


3. In order to increase your blessings in life, you must be truly thankful for what you already have. You will ultimately lose what you aren’t thankful for. It’s not enough to feel thankfulness; you need to express the feeling in the way you treat others. Find a way each day to show the people around you how thankful you are for the goodness in your life, whether it’s by doing your work with a smile or going out of your way to do something nice for another person. When you’re thankful, you’ll experience God's presence in your life like never before. Give thanks to Him in every circumstance and show appreciation to others and you'll be amazed at the miracles released in your life.