What Do You Say?

But I will give repeated thanks to the Lord, praising him to everyone. ~ Psalm 109:30 (NLT)

Is it possible for someone to say “thank you” too much? Can we actually grow tired of hearing someone saying it over and over and over and over and over and…? OK, you get the idea. The answer, I believe, can be both yes and no. It can certainly be a “yes” when the sentiment behind the thank you becomes lost. The repetition of saying thank you is simply being said out of habit, or just to annoy. The answer can also be a “no.” Thankfulness, true thanks, with meaning behind it, should never get old. A heartfelt “thanks” should always be welcome to our ears.

Here’s the issue. How often are our “thank yous” one-sided? As an example, a waiter delivers the dessert to a child at a restaurant. The child is obviously happy about it. The parent then leans over and says to the child, “What do you say?” The child then replies with “THANK YOU!” to the waiter. It’s cute. But, does it have meaning behind it? Yes and no. We should show gratitude when someone brings us something nice. And, yes, we should train our kids how to say thank you to those who are helping them.

However, I would like us to examine this a little deeper. Are we teaching our kids to say thank you only when we get what they want, or something good happens? Though these are worthwhile of our thanks, I don’t think they represent true thankfulness. We need to also be thankful during the trials, storms, and difficulties in life.

Thankfulness, especially in relation to God, doesn’t come and go depending on whether or not we feel God has done something nice for us in the moment. Our thankfulness begins and ends with the cross of Jesus Christ. What was accomplished on the cross nearly 2,000 years ago deserves our repeated thanks. Sure, it’s easy when we are singing praise songs in church, or hearing an inspirational message, or things are generally going well. But, what about when a loved one is dying of cancer? What about when a mass shooting happens? No, we shouldn’t be thankful that they happened. But, we should be thankful that God will see us through; that this sinful life is short; that death is not the end; that life with God is eternal.

Give repeated thanks to God, during both the good and bad times. Give thanks during the trials in life, and the victories He has won, is winning, and will win. He is worthy.