“O give thanks to the LORD, call upon His Name: make known His deeds among the people. Sing unto Him, sing psalms unto Him, talk ye of all His wondrous works. Glory ye in His Holy Name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.” – Psalm 105:1-3, KJV.
Another word for Gratitude is Thanksgiving. Nothing destroys a relationship more than a lack of gratitude between the parties involved. Even within a Family setting, nothing should be taken for granted not to talk of when GOD is involved.
At the beginning of a New Year, we may be tempted not to give thanks that are due unto Him if some of our expectations in the preceding years have not been met. That may be human nature, but we should strive to overcome it to strengthen our relationship among ourselves as humans and more importantly between us and our Maker.
The only people who can no longer have the opportunity to express their gratitude to God are the dead. King Hezekiah stated in the book of Isaiah, “The living, the living, he shall praise Thee, as I do this day.”- Isaiah 38:19, KJV.
 The Scripture elsewhere informed us thus: “For to him that is joined to the living, there is hope; for a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they shall die, but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also for their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun.” – Eccl.9:4-6, KJV.
In other words, irrespective of the situations we may find ourselves as individuals, families, Communities, or as a Nation, the Scripture is still admonishing us to express our gratitude unto our GOD. We should first of all things, count our blessings instead of dwelling on issues that are yet to be resolved in line with our expectations.
Even as the Government at various levels in our Nation is yet to resolve insecurity and hunger issues in our land, we should still give thanks to GOD. He alone knows better how to bring about the kind of changes that we desire in our Land for our lives to be made much better and thus significantly raise the  Standards of Living of most Nigerians.
Let us therefore continue to renew our Hope and keep it alive in GOD even as our fellow humans or human institutions may fail us since they may be limited in their abilities. This limitation may be a result of greed, avarice, and corruption in some government circles as some few public officials continue to pile up our commonwealth at the expense of the masses.
But notwithstanding, as we continue to thank GOD, He knows how best to intervene in our lives at both micro and macro levels soonest in His way.
Happy and prosperous 2024 to us in JESUS name
OLAKUNLE, JP is the General Secretary of National Prater Movement
