The Practice of Gratitude is a Practice of Faith
by Karen S. Roberts
Gratitude Chases Away Worry
I have been working on developing a practice of gratitude. This involves faith. It’s easy for worries to set in when things are going wrong. When I discover thoughts of worry pricking at my brain, I remind myself that God promises His followers that He is working everything together for good for those who love God. (See Romans 8:28)
I am discovering that this is a key to being able to thank God instead of letting worry take over my mind. And when I’m expressing gratitude to God, it drives away the fear that causes worry.
3 Things You Can Do to Chase Away Worry and Build Faith
Sometimes we need techniques in our practice of gratitude to help us work through fear and worry. Here are three that help me.
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- When worry strikes, start to praise God. It’s best to speak your praises out loud, or even sing them. But if you are in a place where you can’t do that, praise Him silently. Focusing on God and His goodness and on telling Him how awesome and wonderful He is will drive away fear and worry.
2. Read some Bible promises. Keep a book of Bible promises on hand. Or you can simply search online for a list of Bible promises. If you journal, have some of God’s promises written down so that you can turn to them when you need to. Also underline or highlight God’s promises in your Bible. When you turn to His promises, your faith will build. You can thank Him for the promises and even read them out loud to yourself. As you think of what He is doing for you and how He is working in your life’s situations, you will become grateful and can thank Him.
3. Get out your pen and start writing about what you are grateful for. You can do this in a journal, in a notebook, or just on a piece of paper. As you focus on giving thanks to God for the things you are listing, you will become more assured that He is working. You will realize that you have nothing to fear.
How Gratitude Builds Faith
Giving thanks is actually a practice of faith that increases your faith. As you give thanks, you are reminding yourself of how good God is and of how He always takes care of you. The more things you discover to be grateful for, the more you will realize just how much God has blessed you. He is not going to stop blessing you. Keep praying, praising, giving thanks, and reading the Word of God. Your faith will become stronger.
Your practice of gratitude will become a weapon that you can use daily to combat fear and worry.
For more information on how to get rid of worry, listen to this teaching by Kenneth and Gloria Copeland.
