Thanksgiving with a grateful heart  

I Thessalonians 5:16. "Be joyful always; 17. pray continually; 18. give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 

The Apostle Paul was the author of ultimate optimism - but does it work? To the church in Rome he wrote, 8:28. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." 

An interesting discussion could be whether God changes our circumstances or changes us. There are some who would add a third possibility to this; is it possible that God allows our circumstances for the possibility of us changing our self?

How much of the process of our conformity to His image is our own responsibility and how much can we expect God to do for us?

If I'm always asking God to change my situations or begging God to change me - I'm going to be disappointed with God on a pretty regular basis.

Isn't that a rather scary thought? Can you hold that possibility without feeling a need to try to explain it away? Am I disappointed with God?

Too many folks are living in a very unstable theological and emotional 'world' explaining away God's failure to perform by assuming that the wrong formula was used in the request, or that there was a spiritual power failure due to a lack of faith.

It seems that the Apostle Paul expected us to do an attitude adjustment on our own - 

regardless of the situation. 

He believed that those simple steps would bring the changes in our lives that we need.