8th of August of every year is always a special day in my life because that is the day I was born! Before you wish me a happy birthday, I want you to first of all join me to express my gratitude to God for keeping me alive up till this day. 

I want to share with you 8 reasons why I am grateful to God today. The idea behind this is that you too will find reasons to be grateful! 

Gratefulness is an attitude that everybody must cultivate and imbibe. It doesn’t just come naturally. You have to be intentional about it, or you will rather be grumpy and full of complaints all of the time.  

There are too many negative things happening every day which try to tempt us not to see any good thing happening in our lives. The temptation is to focus on our ugly experiences and ignore the good things that have happened to us. 

The truth is that, if you are not grateful about the little you have today, you may not experience more. Worst still, an ungrateful person stands the risk of losing what he already has. 

This is the reason I want to share with you in this article, 8 reasons why I am so grateful. I believe this will inspire you to always be grateful also.

#1: MY SOUL HAS BEEN REDEEMED

One major thing to be grateful for in life is for your soul to be redeemed. I don’t know about you, that is the most important thing in life. If you were living outside of Christ before and you are now redeemed by the blood of Jesus, you know what I’m talking about, because life without Christ is full of atrocities. 

However, having experienced the saving power in the Blood of Jesus, I know what it means to be redeemed! 

Another aspect of being redeemed which I’m very grateful for is that my life is being redeemed from destruction – both the one I can see with my physical eyes and the one that I cannot see physically.

In a nutshell, my life is being shielded from the danger of the day and the night, and many evil things that besiege a lot of people every day. But I thank God He has counted me worthy to be protected by his angels. Is this not enough reason to be grateful?

#2: I AM NOT WHERE I USED TO BE

When I celebrated my 20th birthday on the 8th of August 2014, friends that gathered to celebrate with me on that day asked me many challenging questions. They asked questions ranging from what I dreamed to become in five years’ time to when I plan to settle down in marriage and all that stuff. 

It was an exciting moment. I responded to the questions friends threw at me about my dreams in 5 years’ time. Looking back today, I cannot but be grateful to God that I have really made tremendous progress! 

At that time in 2014, I was still trusting God for a University admission. But today, six years later,  I am not only a university graduate, but I have also completed my National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme. 

That’s the power of dreams. My friend, it is true that dreams do come to pass! I encourage you to follow your dreams because if you’re passionate about your dreams, come rain or sunshine, you will stand in your dreams in no length of time! 

Practically everything I dreamed I would become, which I said in front of friends on my 20th birthday, has come to pass in my very eyes. 

This will inspire you not just to daydream and wish for things to happen, but to have concrete dreams that can be actualized everyday. I’m so grateful that today, I’m standing in my  dreams. 

This is not to say that I have arrived. Of course, my best days are still ahead of me and I will not rest “until my good is better and my better becomes the best.” 

This is why I’m always grateful. And this is what I wish for you too.

#3: GOD GUIDES MY PATH EVERYDAY

Another secret I discovered not long ago is the importance of receiving guidance from God for my life’s pursuits. 

I’m talking about God’s guidance or divine guidance as some would call it. If you allow God to guide you every day, I can guarantee you that your path will always shine brighter and brighter as days go by. 

I’ve discovered that if you humble yourself before God and put Him first in everything you do, He will direct your path; and when God directs your path, you look smarter than you really are. 

That is the secret of my life: God’s guidance! 

If you can trust God to  guide you, be rest-assured that He will. 

I remember trusting the Lord to guide me to a good place where I could work and have a good income about six years ago, and God brought me to a place where I met good mentors who taught me so many things about life. 

Where I am today is a result of being guided by God every day, and for this, I’m so grateful.

#4: I’M SURROUNDED BY GREAT FRIENDS

The saying that “Show me your friend and I will tell you the kind of person you are” is very true.

The reason why I’ve made progress in life in the last six years is because of the kind of friends that surround me. I’m so grateful to God for bringing me in contact with loving people who want the best for me. 

This is why I want to encourage you to surround yourself with like-minded friends who will never misguide or mislead you or be jealous of your progress in life. Such friends can only be God- sent. 

If you have great friends in your life who help you to make a tremendous impact and progress in your life, you will be constantly grateful, won’t you? I am fortunate to be surrounded by great friends, and for this, I’m so grateful.

#5: I HAVE LEARNT TO KEEP IT SIMPLE

A lot of people find life to be difficult, and they also approach life from a difficult angle. But I was stunned  to discover that life is very simple, and that I must keep it simple. 

This is what great mentors can do in your life. Today, I do not have to worry about so many things in life because I take  life one step at a time. This is why I’m so grateful to God because I would have made my life too sophisticated that I achieve little or nothing.  

However, I found out that if you keep it simple and you learn all you can about what you want to achieve in life, you can make progress everyday.

This is what I’ve discovered about life and I want you to also follow suit. You’ll be glad you did. Yes, keep it simple!

#6: I AM STRONG AND HEALTHY

How in the world can I forget how sickly I could be many years ago when my parents ran here and there to ensure that I got better. 

I used to have a nurse dedicated to treating me because more often than not, I was always down with malaria and every kind of ailment you could think of. But the story is different today because I got into a church where I learnt everything about faith that I never knew before.

I have learnt so much about faith and divine healing today and I know how to stand my ground against illnesses and weaknesses of all types. 

Please don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying I have the greatest faith on earth. In fact, I’m still learning. I’m still a student of faith.  But to tell you the truth, my health is a lot better than it used to be, and I feel so strong and healthy today. 

You too can have access to the wonderful resources that have brought me this far. 

I keep learning how to walk by faith by listening to Pastor D. J. Goodman’s messages and reading all his books. You can get Pastor Goodman’s resources by Pastor Goodman’s Resources I also love reading  Kenneth E. Hagin books on Faith and the move of God.

I learn a lot every month by reading Faith Booster magazine,  The Word of Faith magazine and Believers’ Voice of Victory magazine. These are all free magazines which you can download by clicking on the various links. 

Once you know the truth, the truth will make you free and you will forever be grateful to God about your health among other things.

#7: GOD ANSWERS MY PRAYERS

Another very important thing for which I’m grateful to God is that He always answers my prayers. 

I remember many years ago when my dad called me to dissuade me from seeking a university education because of his financial situation. I boldly told my father not to worry about me. Though I didn’t know how God was going to do it, I strongly believed I would go to the university. 

So what did I do? I prayed about it and trusted that God will make a way.  You know what my friend? God answered my prayer!

Today, I’m a university graduate! It was God’s miraculous work. The truth is, I didn’t even go to the university as someone from a humble background. I went to the university like a child from the rich home. 

It is only God that could have done that, because He answers the prayers of His children. 

I also remember praying to God about my health many years ago, and He answered my prayer. There are too many things that I would have loved to talk about today about the prayer-answering power of God, but time will not permit me. 

However, one thing I know is that once I go to God in prayer about my heart desires, all my problems are over if I can just have faith and hold fast  to his word. He answers my prayers just as much as He answers the prayers of all His children.

#8: I’M A YEAR OLDER TODAY

I cannot but be grateful to God today because it’s my birthday. Wow, it’s the 8th of August, and I’m a  year older today!  I want you to join me and thank God for keeping me alive and well. 

I’m so excited to be celebrating this birthday in good health. 

God has been so good to me and I know he has been good to you too.  My friend, this is the reason why I told you from the beginning of this article that I’m grateful.

SO FRIENDS, WHAT ARE YOU GRATEFUL FOR?

This is not all about me. It’s also about. I know there are 1001 things for which you are grateful. Do you mind sharing some of them with me? Please go to the comment section below to share your thoughts, and don’t forget to wish me a Happy Birthday. I love you!!