A HEART OF GRATITUDE PSALM 92:1-4, EPH. 5:20, HEB. 13:15. Giving thanks always for all things… There is no exemption of what to give thanks to God for. Give Him thanks in good times, give Him thanks in bad times. Heb. 13:15 says give God thanks continually. Thanksgiving is not just for the end of the year but always. GRATITUDE • This is an inward feeling of kindness received or feeling of being thankful. • It is the feeling of appreciation or thankfulness that you have when you think of what God has done. • It is recognising and expressing appreciation for the benefits that you receive from God and others (Ps. 68:19). Always thank God for your life and complete body. Thank Him for the benefit of salvation (Ps. 51:5). Thank God for grace that took over guilt through the death of Christ Jesus. The whole message of the gospel is about guilt, grace and gratitude. We didn’t deserve the sacrifice Christ made for us but He died for us even while we were yet sinners (Roms. 5:8). This is great enough to give gratitude to God. We always think of what we don’t have and we forget that there are people who do not have what we have. Until you realize that God deserves your praise, you may not give Him thanks. Gratitude starts from the heart. Until you think it, you will not do it. So many persons have also been of benefit to you in one way or the other. Many of us see benefits as only when we are given money but receiving corrections and counsels from people are benefits enough to be grateful for. Learn to appreciate people no matter how small what they do for you is. Until you appreciate the people you see, you cannot appreciate God whom you don’t see. When you are grateful it shows the condition of your heart. Your heart condition is of great value to gratitude. A person who is grateful shows that he is a righteous person (Ps.140:13). You might not be where you want to be, but you are no longer where you used to be and so you need to be grateful. Learn to appreciate God all times, even for little things. Note that you cannot show appreciation to God without giving something (Prov. 3:9). To show appreciation goes beyond words. “As we express our gratitude, we must not forget that the highest appreciation is not just to utter words but to live by them” – John F. Kennedy. When giving ask yourself this question: “Am I giving to the point of sacrifice? Sacrifice is very important in giving (mark 12:41-44). Let your giving be sacrificial, it attracts more blessings. HOW TO GIVE 1. A heart of gratitude gives with joy, cheerfully, without murmuring or grumbling (2Cor. 9:7). When giving God anything, give it with joy. There is nothing you give to God that is big enough because everything you have, He gave to you. 2. A heart of gratitude gives to honour God, not to show off. Give in humility (Prov. 3:9). 3. A heart of gratitude gives willingly and voluntarily (1Chro. 29:9). You don’t need to be cajoled or coaxed before you give to God. 4. A heart of gratitude gives the best; the very good gifts, not the bad ones (Gen. 4:3-6). Until you get to the point where you make God priority in your life, you do not have a heart of gratitude. 5. A heart of gratitude gives in faith (2Kings 17:12-13,16). 6. A heart of gratitude gives all – sacrificially, without reservations (2Sam. 24:24). When you give sacrificially, you raise an altar to God which will speak good things for you, rebuke the devourer for your sake. The altar will cancel adversaries and adversities for you; it will deliver victory to you (2Kings 3:27). Sacrificial giving positions you for answers. Sacrificial gift surely speaks! Note that what you offer you don’t suffer. Make up your mind to be a giver no matter how small what you have to give might be. No gift is too little to give and nothing is too small to give God thanks for. • A heart of gratitude makes way for fresh impact – Ps. 89:20-24. • Multiplication answers to gratitude and thanksgiving. • Thanksgiving sustains your fruitfulness. When you are grateful, you become fruitful – Ps. 92:14. No matter what you have: car, house, talent, ability, it should be an instrument to be used, not a god (deity) to be worshipped. Nothing should be too big for you to give to God! COMMITMENT TO THANKSGIVING. As a child of God, every year is good for you so no need to audit whether the year is good or not. REASONS WHY WE SHOULD THANK GOD 1. God does not desire our thanksgiving because He lacks anything (Psalm 50:8-15). The primary reason why God wants our thanksgiving is for the reason of fellowship. If God can be good to us then it’s good we show fellowship to Him. Fellowship is about association and companionship. 2. We must continually do thanksgiving because of salvation. Eph. 2:8-9, John 1:12, 1john 1:9, Eph. 1:7. 3. We must do thanksgiving because we have redemption benefit. Luke 10:19. If you are redeemed, you have authority over demons and become a possessor of the Holy Ghost. You also have spiritual blessings such as longevity, divine health e.t.c. Col 1:13, Eph. 1:3. 4. If we talk about thanksgiving, the first thing you should give is yourself. Recognise the place of God in your life. Rom. 8:22. 5. Thanksgiving should be habitual not seasonal; it should be an everyday thing because God’s blessings to us are continual. 6. Your thanksgiving should not be a casual thing, it should be sacrificial. Psalm. 107:22. You should thank God not just with giving but with services. Ingratitude is a sin. 7. Thanksgiving Guarantees peace. Phil. 4:6.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 15:47:39 +0000
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