It’s not easy to stop worrying about the often-scary, everyday parts of our ministries, but God tells us how to do it: “Pray about everything . . . and thank him for all he has done” (Philippians 4:6 NLT). 

Grateful prayer brings peace. When worry creeps in—whether it’s an upcoming sermon, a church budget that won’t balance, or a struggling congregant—God invites us to bring all those concerns to him.

Parents understand the power of gratitude. 

Most parents wouldn’t appreciate their children always making requests without saying “thank you” for what they’ve already received. 

God sees it the same way. He wants us to ask him for what we need and want. More than 20 times in the New Testament, we’re told to “ask” him. But he wants us to ask with gratefulness.

The Bible urges us to be specific in our requests—and our praises.

Instead of a simple “thank you for everything,” he wants us to tell him what we’re grateful for. When we say to our spouses, “I’m so grateful for you,” they instinctively want us to be specific. 

They want to hear what about them we’re grateful for.

God wants to hear the same things. 

So when you pray, tell God what you’re thankful for. Prayer is one of the most important ways we tell God “thank you.”

Thanking God in advance is a big step of faith. The Bible says that when we have the faith to thank God ahead of time for an answer to our prayers, miracles happen. The more thankful we are, the more God works in our lives.

The Bible says that God inhabits the praise of his people. He empowers and uses our thanksgiving as an instrument of power in our lives and ministries.