Bridget A. Thomas
Every day is a gift!
Adding Gratitude to Our Prayers
One powerful way to add more gratitude to our lives is to add gratitude to our prayers.
Personally, much of my prayers consist of asking God for things. And it’s okay to seek God in prayer when we have worries, if we need the Lord’s guidance, or if our loved ones need prayer. But when we include gratitude and praise in our prayers, this will help alter our prayer lives and ultimately our attitudes.
We have a sign hanging on a wall in our home that says, “Dear God, I want to take a minute, not to ask for anything from you, but simply thank you for all I have.” I wish I could say I read that sign every day. Unfortunately, like many things in our homes, we get used to seeing them and neglect to take notice.
However, if we do take the time to say “thank you” to God each day, this will steer our focus away from ourselves and our problems, and instead help us to see God’s goodness.
Gratitude in our prayers will also remind us of times when God has come through for us in the past. This will fuel our prayers with hope and power.
When we include gratitude for who God is, this will help us to remember that He is mightier than anything we are facing. He can handle any problem we are up against, big or small.
Gratitude in our prayers will also remind us that God is with us. He is actually walking alongside us through life’s ups and downs.
Ultimately, gratitude will bring restoration to our souls and healing to our hearts.
Perhaps you’re familiar with these verses written by Apostle Paul: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV)
These verses remind us that we can and should meet with God in prayer when we have worries on our minds. It says by “prayer and supplication … let your requests be made known to God.”
And did you catch the two words tucked in there? I think I’ve always skipped right over the “with thanksgiving” part. But they’ve been there all along!
With thanksgiving we are to bring our worries and needs before the Lord.
When we do this, we don’t have to be anxious. God will give us His peace which surpasses understanding. When we trust God with our cares, He brings that peace to our hearts.
Maybe you think these words don’t apply to you. Maybe you’re thinking, But you don’t know what I’m dealing with.
One thing to note is that Paul wrote these words when he was imprisoned. In his walk with Jesus, he had been beaten, persecuted, and shipwrecked. Yet he still found these words to be true. Paul saw firsthand how the Lord had been with him through all of his trials.
Dr. Charles Stanley wrote, “It is no wonder that we feel apprehensive when we measure our troubles against our ability to handle them. Anxiety, however, disappears when we learn to take our concerns to God. He is the only One who has the power and wisdom to deal with every issue perfectly. This is why we stand tallest and strongest on our knees. When we are submitted to the One who always works in our best interest, we know we have absolutely nothing to fear.”
And that is something to be thankful for. The next time you turn to God in prayer, take a moment to include gratitude, along with your needs and worries. God will love to hear it, and it will help your heart to feel at peace too.
Dear Lord, we are thankful we can come to You in prayer. We’re thankful to know You care about the things that weigh on our minds. We’re thankful that You are right there with us, through all we face. And when we cast our cares on You, we can find peace, because You are bigger than anything we face. Lord, this isn’t always easy, because our problems seem like mountains at times. Please help us to keep turning to You. Help us to rely on You. And help us to come before You with gratitude. Thank You. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
The two pictures below aren’t great because we were riding in the vehicle when I snapped them. (No I wasn’t driving. My husband was. lol.) But I wanted to share two things that bloom around this time of year in Florida – cassias and rain trees. They are prettier in person!
© 2018-2024 Bridget A. Thomas. All rights reserved.
Bridget A. Thomas 
I am grateful to see beautiful blooming trees this time of year as well as colorful leaves covering the ground. I remember those pink silky starburst-like blooms of the ‘mimosa’ (?) tree from my youth. One of my favorites. Thank you for sharing the saying on your wall. I am going to add that to my collection on my refrigerator.
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I like the mimosas too. We don’t get a lot of the leaves changing here. That’s something I miss from growing up in NY. and I’m really glad to know the words from the saying were insightful. Thank you, Pauline. I hope you have a great weekend 🍁🍂
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I love this, and will absolutely say, “Thank you!” for posting it.
God doesn’t need our thanks to Him – we do. Giving thanks reminds us to recognize God’s Hand in our lives, that He is always good (even when we don’t like what He is allowing, it’s still a blessing for us, opportunities to become more like Christ), and is always loving, protecting, and gracious.
Beautiful trees!
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So true. When we extend our gratitude towards God, it really does our hearts so much good. And I appreciate your point about opportunities to become more like Jesus too, because the Lord is continually molding us. Thank you, Kathy! I hope you’re enjoying your weekend 😊
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Your post reminds me that gratitude is on a sliding scale. Some with far less than I have are more thankful, and some with more are less thankful. Material possessions are nice, but they can’t necessarily create godly joy.
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A great point! How much we have doesn’t equate to how thankful we are. And sometimes it’s those who have seen much hardship that are grateful, because they’ve learned to appreciate life more. Sometimes I remind myself that even if God did nothing for me, He still deserves my praise and gratitude. 🙏
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Perfect timing. I’m giving a brief presentation at church for a program about finding joy in gratitude. It’s validating to see my points here too. 🙂
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Oh that’s awesome! And definitely God! I wish could be there for your presentation. It sounds like it will be inspiring. Prayers that all goes great! 🙏
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Thank you!
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You’re welcome ♥️
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Pretty pictures! Everything is still so nice and green in FL. 😊 God’s peace is an amazing gift. It’s a blessing to exchange our worries for His peace. He’s got it all in control. May we learn to trust Him each day.
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And be thankful for all His many blessings!!
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Amen! 🙏
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Yes everything is still green here. Lol. But I bet you saw some beautiful leaves changing where you are. I agree, God’s peace really is a gift. Trusting Him can feel really hard sometimes, especially when facing challenges. But we can get there. And it’s worth it when we do. ♥️
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Bridget, I love this post. Each one is such a necessary reminder. Being grateful is truly powerful when we included it in our prayers. It does a work in us that helps us so much. I love this part of the Charles Stanley quote- we stand tallest and strongest in our knees in prayer 🙏🏽.
Blessings my friend.
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I’m glad this was inspiring, Manu. You’re right, gratitude is powerful. And I agree, that is an excellent reminder to stay persistent in prayer. Blessings to you too, my friend ♥️
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This was a wonderful post to read today…very uplifting. Thank you for sharing it with us. A grateful heart is a happy heart. Thanking God each day for all the big and little things means so much. 🙂 So many blessings flow throughout our lives, day in and day out. When we pause and reflect on this, the blessings overflow…just as God has promised. (23rd Psalm)
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I’m glad this was uplifting. And your words uplifted me. Often the busyness of life keeps me distracted and I forget to pause and give thanks for the blessings. But your words reminded me that we have to be intentional when it comes to our gratitude. And thank you for mentioning Psalm 23. I love that one and the reminder that the Lord is our Good Shepherd. ♥️
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I think cancer changed how I approached GOD. I did start thanking HIM more, just for being there. I found myself praising HIM rather than asking HIM to heal me. I just needed HIM close, and HE was so very kind that way. I needed courage and strength. That was most meaningful to me at the time. And here I am now, praising HIM each morning, just for waking me up!! Great post!
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Thank you for sharing your story. God uses your journey to help encourage others. What a blessing. I love your attitude and your continued praise. That is the way we all need to approach life. God bless you, Maxine! 🤍
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Thank you sweet friend. GLORIFYING our GOD together! What a wonderful gift! What a wonderful GOD!
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Amen 🙌
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Amen
Gratitude in our prayers can truly transform our mindset and bring us peace. It’s so easy to focus on our needs and worries, but when we take a moment to thank God for His blessings, it shifts our perspective and reminds us of His faithfulness.
Beautiful Photos by the way.
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Thank you, Willie. I wholeheartedly agree. I’m finding that we really need to persevere when it comes to handing our worries to God and incorporating gratitude. The enemy tries every tactic he can to discourage us. Thankfully we have the power of the Holy Spirit to help us push forward to victory. 🙌
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Amen
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When I think of gratitude, I am mindful of the time Jesus healed ten lepers but only one came back to say thank you. Expressing our gratitude to God is the least we can do and it keeps our focus on God.
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Such a great point. That story is an excellent reminder to show the Lord our gratitude. And I like your point about how gratitude helps keep our focus on God. That is exactly where our focus needs to be. ✝️
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