Have you ever heard the phrase, “Thanks for nothing!?” Of course you have. It’s usually said in a less than thankful tone of voice, right? You know what a person is really saying when they thank someone for “nothing.” Well, it’s usually a sarcastic way to acknowledge their dissatisfaction with another’s poor or insulting behavior.
In other words, it’s what someone says when they’re ticked off! It has nothing to do with actual gratefulness; it’s actually the opposite! It’s just a snarky insult and it’s not very nice!
But, what if you took that phrase seriously? What if you actually thanked God for the supposed ‘nothings’ in your life? You will become a happier woman when you say “thanks for nothing” and your faith will become stronger if you infuse it with gratefulness.
Gratefulness for the seemingly inconsequential things in your life can have great consequences.
What if you actually told God ‘thanks for…nothing?’
1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us to “be thankful in all things.” That means A-L-L T-H-I-N-G-S! That means be thankful in the nothings and be thankful in the somethings!
To get you warmed up, start with the most obvious and overlooked things and moments in your day. When you pour coffee, “Thank you, Lord!” When you start your car, “Thank you, Lord.” When you walk to the mailbox and notice how comfortable your shoes are or when you show up for work, “Thank you, Lord!” When you bite into an apple, “Thank you, Lord.”
Get it? When you do this, you’re thanking God for the supposed nothings in your life that are really, actually lots of great somethings! I’ve done this to help me with my grumpiness. Some days, I thank Him when I’m brushing my teeth because I realize how different my life would be if I couldn’t taste or didn’t have running water. I know that may sound dumb, but, sister, it helps me stay grateful! I thank Him when I hear the birds!! Girl, I have even told God, “Thank you, Lord, that I don’t have a headache today.” And, when this blind woman drops something, you should hear the ‘thanks for nothings’ that flow from my lips when I reach down and find it on my first grab!
That’s what I mean by ‘thanks for nothing,’ it’s like saying ‘wow, thanks for all this that I usually don’t even notice.”
Keeping gratefulness on your mind will make appreciation fill your heart.
Developing a habit of saying thanks for the typically unnoticed things in your life isn’t really that hard once you get started. And, when you develop the habit of thankfulness – when you become thankful in all things – you really do begin to have a heart of gratefulness. Let’s face it, there are lots of things in our lives that are really, really hard to have a gratitude attitude about – losing a job, dealing with illness and a million other difficult somethings we face. When we have the attitude of thanking God for the nothings, it helps us be thankful even within the big, hard somethings.
Practice your ‘thanks for nothings’ today! And, the next time a bad something happens, instead of just getting mad and murmuring a “Thanks for nothing” to God, you will be a woman with a grateful attitude, saying “Thanks for everything” to God, and you will be a much happier woman!
What are you grateful for today?
