Author: Jacquiline Lasnik, Colorado, USA
We are anointed…chosen….and called to greater than ourselves and to die to ourselves in the process. I prayed over this post before writing to you. I wondered can someone soft spoken and scatter brained encourage you? We’re all in different seasons, battles, or life stages. How can I write words to bless you? Am I even worthy to contribute to Lynn’s legacy or any of these other women? I regularly face battles with anxiety and insecurity, but how does this align with gratitude?
Gratitude can be hindered by anxiety and comparison. How often do we concern ourselves with how others look or appear on the outside? It is so easy to compare when we see others thriving in their faith journeys and through Instagram highlight reels. We must remember, Jesus never concerned himself the frivolous, but rather the mission. Jesus lived simply and loved simply and relied on God for everything. Because God exists within both the Ordinary and the Miraculous, man was created out of the dust of the ground. David was a boy who slayed a giant. After all, our Savior came as human baby and was placed in a stone basin, places not associated with Glory or Kings. God uses the unlikely to become His partners and intercessors, and without His direction, we cannot achieve either.
Jesus taught us to approach our heavenly Father with gratitude, not fear. Despite the temporary stress and fear over the sacrifice of His life but, He trusted God the Father with the greater outcome of reuniting God and humanity. However, because we’re humans, anxiety often leaves us with more questions than answers.
But we have a solution! Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”(NIV), tells us to approach the throne with gratitude… I know it’s not a feeling that comes to us easily. But let me share how it was explained to me. When seeking God with thanksgiving, our “what if’s” become “even if’s.”
In Daniel 3:16-18, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego give us the example. “16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up’.”(NIV)
It is clear that Safe Places and Weapons Against the Enemy are created with gratitude. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego let go of the idea of control in life’s outcomes. They were okay with the consequences of all choices, present, past, and future. David also spoke about walking through the valley of the shadow of death, (Psalm 23). He remained steadfast in his focus on God. David writes all over in the Psalms about God as a refuge in times of trouble. We can do the same in our homes, as we approach the throne with thanksgiving. Fast well and know God has our outcomes already in His hand.
Jacquilin Lasnick: Honestly, gratitude is something much larger than us…and it’s hard to write a single blog post when entire books have been written on the subject. I cannot tie this up in a neat package for all of you, but, maybe just maybe, syncing with Jesus and being thankful in the process can change the entire atmosphere of our homes…
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