In a typical passage, Paul begins to close out his letter to the Colossians with an emphasis on thanksgiving (see Col. 3:15-17 and 4:2). Let me hazard a guess as to why this is so important: thanksgiving is an act that expresses trust and contentment. It is a sort of kneeling in the soul, a reminder of dependence on God for every good gift. It is something we can do to train and refocus our soul.
More specifically, giving thanks helps me focus less on my discontentedness and more on God's faithfulness. And that's true even if I am giving thanks for the discontentment (See Eph. 5:20 and I Thess. 5:18, as well as the emphasis on thanksgiving throughout the New Testament). Although it seems counterintuitive, giving thanks for the discontentment takes my eyes off of it to focus again on the One who has promised to bring from it the good of conformity to Christ (See Rom. 8:28-29).
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