Praise Like Confetti

Pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Today as I was picking up around the house, I found myself running through a litany of complaints: Why can’t my house stay clean for one entire day without being torn apart? Am I the only one who struggles to get dinner on the table? Will I ever feel rested again?

Maybe you’ve been there too. Some days we hoard complaints in our hearts, keeping tabs on everything that’s going wrong around us. The more things go wrong, the more we try to white-knuckle our grip on control.

Ingratitude causes our vision of what truly matters to become hazy. I’ve had seasons when my eyes were fixed on the temporary problems before me and within me, and I struggled to be truly grateful.

If your heart is packed with problems, gripes, and grievances, you’re certainly not alone. But we don’t have to make our home here. When complaints preoccupy our minds, it’s time to overhaul our ungrateful hearts and refresh our vision.

If you don’t know where to start when it comes to renovating your heart, here are a few simple ideas:

1. Diagnose the source of your ingratitude. What’s driving you to be ungrateful? What lie or false belief is clouding your vision and preventing you from seeing all that God has done and is doing? Instead of allowing ingratitude to consume your peace, name it, bring it to Jesus, and ask him to help you see his sovereignty and goodness over the course of your life (Philippians 4:6-7).
2. Remember what God has done. Open your Bible and read his Word. Remember how God provided manna for the Israelites as they wandered in the wilderness (see Exodus 16). Read about how God heard Hannah’s prayer for a son and answered in his perfect timing (see 1 Samuel 1). Find out how Paul pleaded for God to remove his thorn in the flesh and how he came to delight in God’s provision of strength (see 2 Corinthians 12:7-10). Read until your heart is cleared of the clutter of complaints—or at least until you can breathe a sigh of thanks (see Psalm 136:1). If God delivered the Israelites from their slavery (see Exodus 15:1-6), transformed Ruth’s life (see Ruth 4:13-15), forgave David’s transgressions (see Psalm 51), rescued Jonah from drowning and sustained his life in the belly of a big fish (see Jonah 1:12-17; 2), and saved Paul from a hell-bound life (see Acts 9:1-9), surely he won’t pass you by. You aren’t the exception to God’s faithfulness.
3. Thank God in advance for his provision and grace. Rather than worrying about tomorrow, rehearsing all the things that could go wrong, or coveting all that’s going right in someone else’s life, thank God for all the ways he will show up with his faithfulness and provision, precisely when we need it (see Psalm 103:2; Philippians 4:19).

The gospel reminds us that there is nothing we can do to save ourselves from our sins but that Christ has made a way for salvation through his sinless life and perfect sacrifice. He carried the weight of our sin and ingratitude on his shoulders so we could have full, abundant life in him (see John 10:10). When our eyes are fixed on Jesus, not the problems before us, our grumblings turn into gratitude and our complaints turn into confetti-like praise, sprinkling joy, light, and life all around us.

Word before World The gospel clears out the complaints in our hearts so we can see Jesus more clearly and give thanks for all he has done.

Grow in Grace Write down the false beliefs or fears that drive you toward ingratitude. Now apply the gospel to these. What is proved true in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection?