Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

You could say that this verse is “What Would Jesus Do” on steroids. We have very little grasp today of what it meant in the 1st Century to act “in someone’s name,” and our prayers are anemic as a result. The feeling back then was “in line with their character and will.” Thinking that way should have a fairly massive impact on how we pray, for starters, and here Paul is going beyond prayer to every aspect of our daily lives. We are so different from Jesus, or think we are, that we hardly know where to start in speaking and acting like Him, but Paul gives us an important clue here: be thankful. A heart that is not thankful to God is not trusting Him, His love, His power, wisdom, and plan. That is one of the biggest pitfalls of the entitlement mentality, because if we think we’re entitled to something, we aren’t thankful for it, but rather demand it. These days just saying “entitlement” puts you in the realm of politics, but this is much deeper than that. Grace is the opposite of entitlement; grace is getting better than what we deserve, what we’re entitled to. So long as we think we’re “pretty good,” we won’t be thankful God doesn’t wipe us off the face of the earth! I personally doubt there’s any human being alive who has a full and complete grasp of the grace of God, and that certainly includes me. Knowing God’s grace and being thankful are completely inseparable: you can’t understand God’s grace at all without being overwhelmed with gratitude. That’s why choosing to be thankful is an excellent place to start when it comes to speaking and acting in line with Jesus’ character and will.

Once again I’m preaching to me! I’m quick to think I “deserve” good stuff, and that immediately blunts my gratitude. I desire to speak and act as Christ’s representative, but if I fail to be thankful, I never even make it out of the starting gate. God is incredibly gracious to me, and I recognize and thank Him for only a small fraction of it all. I also need to do much better about thanking those who are the agents of God’s blessings to me. Everyone likes to be thanked! I have made some major interpersonal mistakes by failing to express thanks and appreciation properly in this church, and that is certainly to be avoided as much as possible. If I will indeed give God the thanks He deserves, that should spill over to thanking the people around me as well.

Father, I do have quite a track record of taking things for granted, of feeling “entitled.” Forgive me. Help me recognize more and more of Your grace toward me, as well as those through whom it comes, and speak and act accordingly. May I be an open channel of Your grace to others, whether I feel they “deserve” it or not, so that more and more thanks and praise may go to You, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!