In our prayers to God we ask for a lot of things. But how often do we thank Him for what He does? Probably – for most of us – we ask a lot more than we thank.
In Ephesians 5:20 we are told that one of the evidences of being filled with the Spirit is that we thank God all the time for everything. It says, “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Sometimes I’m asked the question, “To whom should we pray?” Should we pray to the Father, or to the Son, or to the Holy Spirit? Well, quite frankly, I think God is more concerned that you actually pray, than that you get the Trinity figured out. On the other hand, though, the biblical formula for prayer is that we pray to the Father in the name of His Son Jesus Christ. That’s what this verse exhorts us to do. We are to give thanks to God “in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Actually, the phrase “unto God and the Father” is a little different in the original text. There it says, “to the God and Father.” There is one article with two nouns connected by “and”. “To the God and Father” – The two nouns go together to express one concept. In other words, the particular God being talked about is our Father-God. He is the “God-Father.”
Now there are two things to notice here. First – God is our Father and He delights in meeting our needs. Second – We need to thank Him at all times for everything. WHY? Because He’s our Father and He’s taking care of us. Isn’t that what good children do? …they give thanks to their father. So what kind of children are we? “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father…”
Say – I took care of my kids whether they thanked me or not. But I always loved to hear them say, “Thank you, Daddy!”