Thank You
Have you ever done something for someone else or given a gift that was not acknowledged? How did it make you feel? What did you think about it? I have and to be honest, it hurt my feelings and made me not want to do anything else for that person. No one likes it when what they have done or given is taken for granted and God is no exception.
Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revealer and Mediator of that will].
1 Thes. 5:18 Amplified
God's will for us includes us cultivating a thankful heart. I frequently spend time remembering the many things that God has done for me. He gave Jesus to take the punishment I deserve for my sins. He gave me eternal life with Him. He healed all my emotional wounds and fixed all my brokenness. He has filled my life with good people and has patiently helped me grow to be more like Him even though it has taken lots of repeat lessons. God is good and He does nothing but good for each and every one of us.
There is not a day that goes by that we don't have something to be grateful for. God's love for us alone is worthy of daily thanks and every other expression of gratitude that we can think of.
Our minds do not naturally see or dwell on the many blessings God has given us. Instead we are quick to notice the things we think we are lacking and focus on all the ways our desires are not being met. Let me just tell you, this grieves God. Being ungrateful for what God has given us or done for us has many adverse effects. I want to focus on two of the damaging consequences of being ungrateful but I am sure you can think of others.
One, a lack of thankfulness for what God has done allows discontentment, selfishness, frustration, greed, and lust to grow in our lives. These things are not of God and prevent us from living His promises. The more we think about what we want and don't have, the farther from God we move. And without Him, we are done for.
The second result of ungratefulness is the limit it places on God's power in our life. The Bible says the measure we use towards others is the same measure that will be used toward us. This principle is not limited to only our giving but also includes our thankfulness. How we treat God and people matters. In the story of the talents, the master took away from the servant who did not invest what he had been given. Gratitude is a way of investing in the future. Giving thanks to God now for what you do have and can do allows Him to use you in a greater capacity in the future.
We have to put forth some effort and develop the habit of acknowledging not only God's presence in but His hand on our lives. Doing so will keep the door of our life shut to self-centeredness and open to the love and will of God.
Learn to be grateful for what you have while you are waiting for things to come.
Thank God daily.
Heidirn
Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revealer and Mediator of that will].
1 Thes. 5:18 Amplified
God's will for us includes us cultivating a thankful heart. I frequently spend time remembering the many things that God has done for me. He gave Jesus to take the punishment I deserve for my sins. He gave me eternal life with Him. He healed all my emotional wounds and fixed all my brokenness. He has filled my life with good people and has patiently helped me grow to be more like Him even though it has taken lots of repeat lessons. God is good and He does nothing but good for each and every one of us.
There is not a day that goes by that we don't have something to be grateful for. God's love for us alone is worthy of daily thanks and every other expression of gratitude that we can think of.
Our minds do not naturally see or dwell on the many blessings God has given us. Instead we are quick to notice the things we think we are lacking and focus on all the ways our desires are not being met. Let me just tell you, this grieves God. Being ungrateful for what God has given us or done for us has many adverse effects. I want to focus on two of the damaging consequences of being ungrateful but I am sure you can think of others.
One, a lack of thankfulness for what God has done allows discontentment, selfishness, frustration, greed, and lust to grow in our lives. These things are not of God and prevent us from living His promises. The more we think about what we want and don't have, the farther from God we move. And without Him, we are done for.
The second result of ungratefulness is the limit it places on God's power in our life. The Bible says the measure we use towards others is the same measure that will be used toward us. This principle is not limited to only our giving but also includes our thankfulness. How we treat God and people matters. In the story of the talents, the master took away from the servant who did not invest what he had been given. Gratitude is a way of investing in the future. Giving thanks to God now for what you do have and can do allows Him to use you in a greater capacity in the future.
We have to put forth some effort and develop the habit of acknowledging not only God's presence in but His hand on our lives. Doing so will keep the door of our life shut to self-centeredness and open to the love and will of God.
Learn to be grateful for what you have while you are waiting for things to come.
Thank God daily.
Heidirn
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