Happy Thanksgiving 快乐感恩

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Dexu Xia

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Oct 12, 2022, 1:30:09 PM10/12/22

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In every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6

A study by psychologist Robert Emmons divided volunteers into three groups that each made weekly entries in journals. One group wrote five things they were grateful for. One described five daily hassles. And a control group listed five events that had impacted them in a small way. The results of the study revealed that those in the gratitude group felt better about their lives overall, were more optimistic about the future, and reported fewer health problems.

Giving thanks has a way of changing the way we look at life. Thanksgiving can even make us happier.

The Bible has long extolled the benefits of giving thanks to God, as doing so reminds us of His character. The Psalms repeatedly call God’s people to give Him thanks because “the Lord is good and his love endures forever” (Psalm 100:5) and to thank Him for His unfailing love and wonderful deeds (107:8, 15, 21, 31).

As the apostle Paul closed his letter to the Philippians—the letter itself a kind of thank-you note to a church that had supported him—he linked thankful prayers with the peace of God “which transcends all understanding” (4:7). When we focus on God and His goodness, we find that we can pray without anxiety, in every situation, with thanksgiving. Giving thanks brings us a peace that uniquely guards our hearts and minds and changes the way we look at life. A heart full of gratitude nurtures a spirit of joy.

What threatens your sense of gratitude? How is God calling you to a “happy thanksgiving” as you bring your needs before Him?

Father in heaven, where I see problems, grant me a spirit of gratitude and grateful praise.

只要凡事藉着祷告、祈求和感谢，将你们所要的告诉上帝。—腓立比书4章6节

美国心理学家罗伯特 · 埃蒙斯进行了一项研究。他将一群自愿受试者分为三组，让每一组的人每周都做纪录。第一组要写下五件感恩的事，第二组要写下五件麻烦的事，而最后的对照组则要写下五件对他们影响不大的事。研究结果显示，感恩组的成员对生活的各方面都较为满意，对未来感到乐观，健康状况也较为良好。

感恩能转变我们对生活的看法，甚至让我们更快乐。

圣经一直以来都宣扬向上帝感恩的益处，因为感恩能提醒我们上帝的特质。圣经的诗篇一再呼吁上帝的百姓要向上帝献上感恩，“因为耶和华本为善，祂的慈爱存到永远”（诗篇100篇5节），要感谢祂无尽的爱，以及祂所行的奇事（107篇8、15、21、31节）。

在写给腓立比教会众人的信中，使徒保罗在结尾的部分也将感恩祷告与上帝“出人意外的平安”连结在一起（4章6-7节），而这封信本身就是给支持他的教会的一封感谢信。若我们专注于上帝和祂的良善时，我们就会发现自己可以在任何情况下，以感恩的心，一无挂虑地祷告。感恩能带给我们一种平安，这种平安能保守我们的心思意念，并改变我们对人生的看法。一颗感恩的心能让人满有喜乐！

哪些事情使你无法感恩？当你将需求摆在上帝
面前时，祂如何提醒你要快乐感恩？