So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Colossians 2:6-7

Overflowing means full to the top and spilling over. How can we live full to the top and spilling over with gratitude? By expressing what we are thankful for to God and the people around us. What does a sacrifice of thanks look like for you?

Habakkuk was going through tough times. He said, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails, and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior” (Habakkuk 3:17-18 NIV). In the midst of all the bad things that went wrong, Habakkuk rejoiced. What’s his cause of gratitude? “I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

Give thanks to God! That is the ultimate test of the depth of your faith. Can you thank God when life stinks? When you’re going through tough times, don’t look at what’s lost. Look at what’s left and be grateful for it! You can be thankful to God just for being God. He has promised to see you through those tough situations, and your faith will grow even stronger because of it.

When we purpose our hearts to live thankfully and cultivate gratitude in our lives, it is a worthy response to the faithfulness of our loving Father. We cannot be built up in Christ, or grow in him, unless we are first rooted in him, or founded upon him. Being established in the faith, we must abound therein, and improve in it more and more. God justly withdraws this benefit from those who do not receive it with thanksgiving; and gratitude for his mercies is justly required by God.

Anybody can thank God for good things. But if you can thank God even in the bad times, your faith will grow stronger as your roots go deeper.

rICK wARREN