“Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving” Colossians 4:2
Two commands are given in this short directive from the apostle Paul: continue and watch. First, we are to continue in daily and fervent prayer to God. In 1 Thessalonians Paul tells us to pray unceasingly and in every epistle he reminds us to devote ourselves to prayer. Prayer was a key to Paul’s instructions to us. 
Christ’s words and example were also constant reminders of the importance of prayer. But in this verse Paul reminds us that as we pray, we must be also be carefully “watching” for occasions of thanksgiving.
The word “watch” means to be vigilant, alert, attentive. We must be intentional in our watch. It is not something that will come naturally. It is hard to see good in difficult situations or peace in turmoil. It seems Paul knew that we have a tendency to be forgetful of the Lord’s blessings in our lives. We tend to take even the greatest mercies and most undeserved gifts for granted. We forget to give thanks for God’s place in our lives.
As we pray, we should be watchful for opportunities to give thanks. No matter what the situation, we should intentionally look for the ways that we have been blessed. And how blessed we have been!! There is an old saying that says, “I was complaining about not having shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.” Unless we “watch” for things to be thankful for, we will probably neglect to be thankful. Our natural tendencies are to be selfish and ungrateful. We need to ask ourselves, is there something in this request for which I could also be giving thanks? Is there a reason to be grateful, even in the midst of this trial?
For instance, as we pray for a loved one to be healed, 
couldn’t we be grateful for having the loved one in our lives to begin with? As we pray for revival in our country, in our church, and in our homes, couldn’t we thank God for the promise that he will be found by those who seek him? This morning as I sit here and the sun is just coming up, I see in just a glance a hundred things to be grateful for. The sky is beautiful, my deck is sturdy, my home is solid, and family is safe. The birds are all around me filling the air with song. But could I sit here and not see any of these things, not hear any of these things, not be thankful for any of these things if I did not take the time to look for them. There is no way my difficulties can outnumber my blessings, but I must be alert to those blessings or I will miss them.
A man had a habit of grumbling at the food his wife placed before him at family meals. Then he would ask the blessing. One day after his usual combination complaint-prayer, his little girl asked, “Daddy, does God hear us when we pray?”
“Why, of course,” he replied. “He hears us every time we pray.”
She paused on this a moment, and asked, “Does He hear everything we say the rest of the time?”
“Yes, dear, every word,” he replied, encouraged that he had inspired his daughter to be curious about spiritual matters. However, his pride was quickly turned to humility at his daughter’s next question.
“Then, which does God believe?”
Our thankfulness to God in prayer should match our thankfulness to God in our daily lives. We must be careful to pray every day, and as we pray, we must be careful to give thanks to God for his abundant provision and marvelous promises. Even in the needs, even in the sorrows, even in the trials there are always reasons to be grateful. There was once a preacher who did a sermon on thankfulness and at the end he passed his hat. When it was returned to him, there was nothing in it, but he knew he needed to give thanks. He said, “Thank you God I got my hat back from this group.” It was hard, but he found something to be grateful for!!
Sometimes it is good during our difficulties to make a “thankful sandwich” when we pray. Our need should be placed between two slices of thankfulness. Be thankful for something God has done, then present our need, then finish it off with something more else to be thankful for. If we are twice as thankful as we are needy, it will hold our prayers together.