A few months back I took my nine-year-old daughter on a date. Walking to the restaurant, I noticed she was trying to walk in sync with my steps. As she achieved her objective, she happily exclaimed: “Look Daddy, our steps are matching!” That heartwarming sentence got stuck in my head. The weight of my responsibility dawned on me, as a father with little eyes trying to “match my steps.” It can be easy to want to ditch that responsibility when I consider the frequent moments when my steps are not worthy to be followed.
In Colossians, Paul exhorts us to “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord” (Col 1:10). This walk is our manner of life that reflects the values and principles of our heavenly citizenship. Multiple times in Colossians, Paul urges us to consider our “walk” of life. Colossians 3 culminates with foundational instructions for living out the various vocational or relational responsibilities we have (i.e. husband, wife, father, son, mother, daughter, master, bondservant.) There is one exhortation that Paul makes regarding our walking that I would like to focus on: Our duty to walk with thanksgiving through prayer.
At first, we might be tempted to look at this duty contemptuously. The cynic in me might want to dismiss this duty by comparing it to the hollowed optimism that leaves many in our modern culture wanting. This is not a “fake it ‘til you make it” kind of positive thinking. Paul grounds a thankful heart, not in our own capacities, not in positive thinking, nor in fake optimism. No, Paul grounds this duty of the Christian life in an objective reality that is massively glorious—our new life in Christ. The worthiness of our walk is not the prerequisite for our new life in Christ, it’s the result of it. Gratitude is the stride with which we take on our vocational duties and responsibilities.
Being thankful is not always as easy as it sounds. More times than I’d like to admit, I’ve told my kids, “Be thankful for what you got!” and “You get what you get, and you don’t throw a fit.” It’s easy to see how these mantras can begin to form a negative notion of thankfulness; it feels like an obligation to be thankful when circumstances are not desirable. That is never fun for anyone.
This is not the sense in which Paul uses thankfulness in Colossians. One glorious truth after another, we are reminded of the wonderful life we have in Christ. This unity with Christ, brought about by grace alone through faith alone, is the essence of the Christian life and a magnificent reality that ought to reshape our life (marriage, parenting, work, etc.)
Why do I call thankfulness a “duty”? How does one begin walking with thanksgiving? I offer a simple suggestion that is embedded in Paul’s exhortation to the Colossians: By prayer saturated with gladness. “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving” (Col 4:2).
I call thankfulness a duty because it is not my natural disposition. Circumstances are not always conducive to make prayer my first response, much less prayer with gratitude. Life in the Christian household is often hectic; work is stressful, schedules are busy, grief sometimes knocks at our door, things are not always tidy and orderly. We’re surrounded by constant reminders that we live in a broken world. Often, my initial response to hard seasons is to do my part to fix things before coming to God in prayer. And when I can’t fix it, gladness is the farthest thing from my mind.
Only God knows how much we pray, and it is the intimate nature of prayer that makes our communion with God grow deep roots in the heart. There is also a substantial benefit of peace for our soul often linked to a prayer life rooted in thanksgiving (Philippians 4, Psalm 16, Psalm 63). In fact, my experience with discontentment has been directly proportional with my neglect of prayer. At times I have dealt with and endured seasons of obnoxious anxiety. It sucks the energy and focus to fulfill my responsibilities as a husband, father, and worker with gladness. Yet, the most comforting response has been to confront such challenges with thankfulness through prayer. I think of the many psalms where King David expresses exasperation over difficult work and family situations, only to end the psalm with a declaration of his gratitude for what God has accomplished, His faithfulness, and providence. When our prayer is seasoned generously with gratitude, worship happens, and we are encouraged and revitalized to fulfill our responsibilities. These are steps worth matching.
Prayer is a wonderful means of grace that strengthens our communion with God, and shapes our disposition towards others, especially those within our family. Prayer gently leads us to get rid of self-reliance and self-focus, grounding our trust in the excellencies of God. Let us walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, matching our steps to our Savior’s and humbly surrendering to him. With unfettered gladness through disciplined prayer, let’s walk in his ways.
