thanks

"So the administrators and the satraps went as a group to the king and said: 'O King Darius, live forever! The royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the decree that anyone who prays to any god or man during the next thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into the lions' den. Now, O king, issue the decree and put it in writing so that it cannot be altered—in accordance with the laws of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.' So King Darius put the decree in writing.

Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before."


Why is it that I am not thankful enough when living in a free country (which is my own)? Here Daniel is, already exiled from his home country, under intense scrutiny and he's giving thanks. Wait, he just found out that prayer to anyone other than King Darius would result in death by carnivorous lions. And he's still giving thanks. To recap, he's giving thanks, even though he's an exile, and even though it may cost him his life.

You see, I forget that Ephesians 5 says to give thanks for for "everything." Literally, everything. There isn't a lot of wiggle room in that word. I mean, certainly there are things that seem to lend nothing to the idea of thankfulness, but I think the idea is that we realize that God has a plan for us that is better than anything that we can come up with.

God has given me more than I could ever deserve. Do I know why? No. But today, and everyday, thanking Him for that grace will be something I do more often.