1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Psalm 92:1-2 “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your loving kindness in the morning and your faithfulness every night.”

1 Chronicles 16:34 “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!”

If for no other reason, we should give thanks to God, because the Bible tell us to.

I wondered, “What is the difference between thanking God and praising Him?”  I know I’m guilty of just combining the two.

To thank the Lord is to thank Him for the things that He’s done for us and provided for us.

When we praise the Lord, we praise Him for who He is and what He’s done, apart from what He’s done for us.

Thanksgiving is the act of giving thanks. It is the grateful acknowledgment of benefits or favors, especially to God.

Gratitude is the feeling of being thankful.

Gratitude is an attitude and thanksgiving is an act. Gratitude is experienced and thanksgiving is expressed. Therefore, it is possible to be grateful without giving thanks. I can also give thanks without gratitude. There is a difference between feeling grateful and expressing thanks.

In Luke 17, we see an example of this, in the story of the ten men healed of leprosy.

“Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border of Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, ‘Jesus, Master, have pity on us!’ When he saw them, he said, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priest.’ And as they went, they were cleansed.

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, ‘Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return to give praise to God except this foreigner?’ Then he said to him, ‘Rise and go; your faith has made you well.’”

How many of those men do you think felt tremendous gratitude as they walked away from Jesus, and became completely healed of their incurable, disgusting, socially isolating disease? I would think all of them did. But how many came back, threw themselves at Jesus feet and thanked him? Just one.

As followers of Jesus, we have been given the gift of salvation and eternal life. We have been cleansed from a life of sin, guilt, shame, and regret with the blood of Jesus righteousness.

We have much to be grateful for, so how often do we say thank you?