Gratitude and Praise Are Not the Same Thing

Gratitude and praise are not the same thing.

Not that I didn't know gratitude before - I've been most of my life. Fifty years in ministry, I've thanked God thousands of times, written about thanksgiving, taught it to women.

But it's like reading a Bible verse you've read a hundred times, and suddenly one word jumps off the page and you think, "Wait - was that always there?"

It was. You just hadn't seen it quite like this before.

That's where I am with gratitude. And I can't quite put it into words yet, but I'm going to try.

Grab your coffee and sit with me for a minute.

What I'm Seeing Differently

It started when I realized I'd been lumping praise and gratitude together my whole life - like they were the same thing.

But they're not.

And seeing the difference has opened up something deeper in my walk with God.

Praise is about who God is. "You are holy. You are faithful. You are mighty. You are good."

Gratitude is about what God has done and is doing. "Thank You for carrying me through that. Thank You for that provision. Thank You for being there in that hard moment."

One declares His character. The other acknowledges His actions in my life.

Both are beautiful. Both are necessary. But they're different.

And at 77, that difference is finally sinking in at a level I'd never grasped before.

What Scripture Shows

Once I started looking for it, I saw gratitude differently throughout Scripture.

David wrote, "I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds." (Psalm 9:1)

Not just "I will praise You for being wonderful."

But "I will thank You and tell what You've actually done."

That's testimony. That's remembering. That's saying out loud, "Here's how God showed up in my story."

Paul wrote, "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." (Colossians 3:17)

Whatever you do. Giving thanks.

Not just in church. Not just when big things happen. In everything - because we're watching for what He's doing, even in the ordinary moments.

The Depth I'm Discovering

Here's what's going deeper for me: Gratitude isn't just good manners toward God.

It's seeing His hand in the details of my life.

When I thank Him for something specific - "Thank You for that conversation with my granddaughter," "Thank You for strength to get through that hard day," "Thank You for the friend who called at just the right time" - I'm acknowledging He was there. He was active. He was involved.

I'm saying, "I see You. I see what You did. It mattered."

And here's what's stunning me at 77: When I start really seeing His specific actions in my everyday life, I can't help but be grateful. Do you see what I see?

Because once you realize how active He is, how constantly He's moving, how many times He's been right there in the middle of your ordinary Tuesday - gratitude becomes less of a discipline and more of a response.

It's like... you've been walking a familiar path your whole life, and suddenly you notice wildflowers blooming along the edge that were always there. You'd walked past them a thousand times. But now you're seeing them.

That's where I am with gratitude.

The Psalms Show This

The Psalmists understood this. Look how they write:

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever." (Psalm 107:1)

Then immediately they get specific:

"Let the redeemed of the LORD tell their story—those he redeemed from the hand of the foe..." (Psalm 107:2)

Tell their story. Tell what He did.

Psalm 103 does the same thing: "Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion..." (Psalm 103:2-4)

Don't forget. Remember. Rehearse what He's actually done.

That's biblical gratitude. Specific. Personal. Rooted in His real involvement in our lives.

How It's Changing My Prayers

When I started practicing gratitude this way - really seeing what God was doing and thanking Him for specific things - my prayers changed.

They got less generic and more alive.

My faith got stronger because I was building a testimony of His faithfulness in the small things and the big things.

Even hard days had moments I could point to and say, "There. Right there. That was Him."

Paul wrote from prison, "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

In all circumstances. Not because all circumstances are good, but because in every single one, God is at work.

And when I train my eyes to see it - to really see it - gratitude becomes my natural language.

At 77, It's Sinking In

I've known about gratitude most of my adult life. I've practiced it, taught it, lived it.

But there's something about this season where it's going deeper. Where I'm seeing layers I'd walked past before.

Gratitude isn't just saying "thank you" because it's the right thing to do.

It's waking up to how present, how active, how involved God is in every detail of my life.

It's spotting His touch in the little mercies, the close calls, the last-minute help that arrives just when needed, and the strength that wasn't mine but still got me through.

And when you start seeing that - really seeing it - your heart just... overflows.

An Invitation

What if you started watching for Him today?

Instead of just saying He's good overall, try noticing what He's actually doing in your life right now.

Keep a little list. Write it down. "Today God..."

Thank Him specifically. Name what He did.

"Thank You for that phone call."

"Thank You for helping me when I was overwhelmed."

"Thank You for the hug from my grandbaby."

"Thank You for the Scripture that spoke right to my heart this morning."

It doesn't have to be big or dramatic. Just real. Just true.

Watch what happens to your heart when you do this for a week. A month.

You'll start seeing His fingerprints everywhere.

And gratitude won't be something you work up - it'll be something you can't hold back. Seeing What Was Always There

That's the beautiful thing about walking with God for a lifetime. He keeps showing you more.

Things you'd known were there but hadn't quite seen this way before.

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name." (Psalm 100:4)

Thanksgiving opens the gates. It ushers us into His presence because it acknowledges He's been in ours.

At 77, I'm seeing that deeper than ever.

And I have a feeling there's even more He wants to show me. Love, Cindy

Song - Gratitude

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