8 Bible Verses To Build A Heart Of Gratitude

Thoughtful Bible verses from a Christian counselor to help your family enjoy a biblical Thanksgiving focused on gratitude.

We want a heart of gratitude, not of grumbling

In the Bible, we read a lot about the Lord’s calling for us to NOT be grumbling, negative, or worrying… and his command for us TO BE thankful, joyful, content people.

God repeats this again and again. Probably because we really need the reminders!

Many of us struggle with negative thinking. We focus on “what ifs” and worst case scenarios. We review our failures and rehearse bad interactions.

This is not what God wants for you, friend!

In the Bible, it is clear that God wants us to enjoy his good gifts, to be thankful and grateful, and to find peace in life.

We might feel stuck in the negative sometimes, but God is strong enough to help us change that. The Holy Spirit can help us become more and more grateful.

[This post may contain affiliate links. If a purchase is made, I may receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.]

The biblical call to build a heart of gratitude

There are a lot of Scriptures about gratitude. Today, I want to focus on my favorites.

These are the Bible verses I find encouraging and that I turn to again and again as a Christian counselor.

Jesus tells us that we speak whatever our heart is full of (Matthew 12:34). So, if we want to encourage our families, love our people well, and be thoughtful and kind people… we need a heart of gratitude.

Let’s look at the biblical foundation for gratitude, and what Scripture says about how we get there.

8 Bible verses to encourage your heart in gratitude

Some of these Scriptures are short and some are long. But all of them are encouraging!

Of course, reading Scripture is not a magic wand. But it is powerful and alive. It will change you, if you let it.

So as you read these verses, I encourage you to pray over them. Ask the Lord to open your heart. His Holy Spirit wants to build gratitude in you.

(1) 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Many of us spend a lot of time trying to figure out God’s will for our lives. But here it is, straight from the Bible.

God’s will for your life – and mine! – is to rejoice, pray, and give thanks.

Maybe this is the counselor in me, but I think it’s meaningful that the Bible says “give thanks” not just to be thankful. Giving thanks is an action step. We say thank you to God no matter how we feel.

(2) Philippians 2:14

“Do everything without grumbling or arguing…”

Really, God? Everything?

If we are honest with ourselves, this Bible verse will convict us. I really struggle not to grumble sometimes, and many families struggle with arguments and conflict.

Yes, we can give forgiveness when that is needed. That’s a key part of happy Christian families!

But the Lord does give us the strength, perspective, and help to avoid grumbling in every situation. It won’t be easy, but He is with us to help us.

(3) John 16:33

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

This Bible verse does not specifically mention gratitude, but it gives us exactly the hope we need to be more thankful people.

Jesus says this to his disciples right before He is arrested and crucified. And I love how honest He is here. He’s realistic: yes, we will have trouble in this world.

We have family conflict. We struggle with depression. We can feel stressed and burned out.

Yet, we also have Jesus. We have the new life that He has given us and the promise of a glorious inheritance with him in heaven – forever! (See Colossians 3 and Ephesians 1 for more.)

The troubles in life don’t need to define our hearts. We can enjoy a heart of gratitude because Jesus has overcome the trouble of the world.

(4) Matthew 6:25-34

“…But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

This is a long passage from the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is telling people they don’t need to worry about things in life like food, clothing, or anything else.

If they seek the kingdom of God, they’ll be fine. God will take care of them.

When we are trying to replace our grumbling with gratitude, we can ask: Am I seeking God’s kingdom and his righteousness in this situation?

When we focus our energy on knowing and following God, we’ll find ourselves a lot more thankful and a lot less worried!

(5) Ephesians 3:1-14

…”And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit…”

This is from Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church, and it’s just part of a wonderful passage about our spiritual life in Christ.

If anything should grow our heart in gratitude, it’s reflecting on the gospel.

This Scripture reminds us that we have been chosen by God. That we are redeemed and forgiven by Christ’s blood. Paul highlights God’s grace in our lives.

In fact, we have been “included in Christ” and “marked with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.”

When you feel discouraged or grumpy, this is the perfect Bible passage to read and meditate on. How glorious is our salvation in Christ!

If you want to grow deeper with the Lord, dive into my devotional workbook: Finding Your Identity In Christ.

(6) Colossians 3:1-2

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”

Okay, this Bible verse is not specifically about gratitude either. But I think it shows us how we can change our hearts to be more and more grateful (and less and less grumbly).

When we fix our thoughts and our hearts on the things of God, we find ourselves less concerned with the troubles of the world. Those are earthly things.

The troubles we face are real, but they are earthly things. And when our eyes are on Christ, we don’t notice them as much. Instead, we notice the things of Christ – his glory, his goodness, his grace.

I pray this Scripture often. Lord, help us to fix our hearts and minds on the things above, where Christ is!

(7) Romans 12:1-2

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

This is another great Bible verse that shows us a little big about how we can grow a heart of gratitude.

The “pattern of this world” is not gratitude. There is a lot of trouble, hardship, and pain. That’s what people tend to focus on – if they are not focusing on the things of God.

But as Christians, we are not shaped by the pattern of the world. We are shaped by God. Renewed by God.

How do we renew our minds, so we can test and approve God’s will… which, remember from 1 Thessalonians 5, is to rejoice, pray, and give thanks continually?

How do we do this?

We renew our minds by reading the Bible, praying, mediating on Scripture and memorizing it, and gathering regularly with other Christian believers.

If you want to build these habits into your own life, grab my FREE 45-day Bible and Prayer Challenge.

(8) Psalm 100

“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”

I couldn’t stop myself from including this whole beautiful psalm! (After all, it is only 5 verses.) It is such a perfect picture of true Christian gratitude.

Yes, God gives us many things in life that we can (and should!) be thankful for. Our families, homes, friends… the beauty of nature… the gospel itself!

But ultimately, we can rejoice always and give thanks in all circumstances because God is so glorious, and we are his people.

Can we enter God’s presence without a heart of gratitude? I think it would be impossible, because when we know God we can’t help but give thanks and praise his name.

Why? “For the Lord is good and his love endures forever.”

Let us ask God to give us a heart of gratitude

These Bible verses make it clear that we have a lot to be thankful for – but they also are clear that gratitude is a spiritual issue.

We are thankful because of who God is and what He has done for us.

Which means, when we are struggling with negative thinking, grumbling, or other hardships, we must pray!

Thanks to Jesus, we can go to God and ask for what we need. We need his help. We can ask God to give us hearts of gratitude and to help us rejoice, give thanks, and fix our hearts and minds on Him.

If you are longing to grow closer to God, I’d encourage you to grab my devotional workbook: Finding Your Identity In Christ. Go deep into 8 biblical truths about who you are in Christ and spend time growing with Him.

Let's connect!

JOIN MY EMAIL LIST for gospel encouragement and first-to-know updates.
JOIN THE FAITH FIVER CLUB and support this ministry on Patreon. Enjoy behind-the-scenes perks and access to my private podcast.
JOIN ME ON PINTEREST and on Facebook for all the latest posts.

And as they say... sharing is caring!

Deepen your spiritual intimacy with the Lord:

Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist but my podcast, blog, and resources are not professional or personal advice. I am an affiliate for many of the resources that I link to, and may earn a small commission if you purchase through my link. Read my full disclaimer here.