Sermon for 11/23/2008
HoHum:
Ephesians 5:20- always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 5:18- give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
WBTU:
A. Yes, but is God ever going to help us with our problems?
D. Philippians 4:6 Living Bible- Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers.
E. Thank Him? I have so many problems; I don’t have the time or energy to thank Him. Underneath this, I am an anxious person. Fear dominates my life. God wants me to focus on Him. Thankfulness takes our eyes off of our problems and focuses them on Jesus Christ.
F. Being a thankful person is more difficult than we might think. We naturally take things for granted and fail to express gratitude. Example of the “challenged” teenagers at South Iredell High. I am not challenged in these ways and I need to be thankful. A poor reason to be thankful, yes, but it woke me up to how much I have.
Thesis: Let’s talk about several misconceptions about thankfulness that we need to work through.
For instances:
1. Thankfulness is not important.
A. Many of our approaches to problems or difficulties are the following:
1. Focus on the problem and pray about it constantly.
2. Get angry if God does not fix it immediately.
3. When God does fix it, see it as something that would have happened anyway.
4. Immediately focus on the next problem and pray constantly about that.
B. Nancy Tester- I remember a recent episode from church. The preacher was praying, thanking God for health, rain, salvation, and love. I remember thinking to myself, “I wish he’d quit wasting time and get to the good stuff.”
C. This is some of our problem. We don’t think being thankful is the good stuff. Many times we see prayer as a Christmas wish list, and thankfulness as the thank you card for a gift we have already opened.
D. Many of us are driven by our needs, and all we do is rip open one gift after another, forgetting to be thankful for what we have already received.
E. As I look back over things in my life, I become more aware of God’s intervention on my behalf. While we are not able to see answers to prayer from day to day, when we look back, we can see many of the ways God has intervened in our lives.
F. Many of us make the mistake of thinking that thankfulness is all for God’s benefit (like sending a thank you card). However, it benefits us as well.
G. Psalm 54:6- I will sacrifice a freewill offering to you; I will praise your name, O Lord, for it is good.
H. If we want a sure fire trip to the dark side, just be ungrateful. Romans 1:21- For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
I. There was a boy who was adopted by a Christian couple. When that boy became a teenager he started to hang around the wrong crowd. He got involved with drugs and the wrong kind of girls. He broke his curfew and was just rebellious. That couple went and talked to the preacher. They asked the preacher if he would go and talk to their teenage son. The preacher went and talked to this young man. The preacher began their conversation about talking about how his parents had adopted him and showered him with love and affection. Then the preacher talked about things that this young man was doing today. The preacher told this young man that he was causing a lot of grief for his parents. Then the preacher asked, “Aren’t you thankful for what your parents did for you?” The young man thought for a moment and then said, “Yes, I am thankful for what my parents did for me. But what I am supposed to be, thankful for the rest of my life?”
J. Yes, we are supposed to be thankful for the rest of our lives. Through Jesus Christ, we have been adopted into the family of God. God is our Father. Jesus Christ is our big brother. We have been showered with love, mercy and grace. One day we are going to live in heaven in the palace of the King. How should we live now? Yes, we should be thankful for the rest of our lives and show it!
2. Thankfulness means pretending that problems don’t exist.
A. Some will say, “Your right, thankfulness is my problem. I am just going to be thankful from now on. In my words and in my prayers, I am just going to focus on being thankful. If problems come, I am not going to focus on the problems, I am not even going to talk about them, and I am just going to be thankful.” Now wait a minute!
B. Two extremes here. Like said earlier, we focus on the problem and neglect thanksgiving, or we focus on thanksgiving and ignore the problems. To focus on thanksgiving sounds more spiritual, but to ignore our anxieties and problems is not being honest. In this last extreme, we are not truly thanking God; we are acting as if God isn’t necessary. God doesn’t want us to ignore our feelings of grief, anger, and confusion. God just wants us to surrender these things to Him so He can help us to deal with them.
C. Philippians 4:6- Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
D. David was painfully honest with God about his problems. Look at Psalm 13- 1 How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; my enemy will say, "I have overcome him," and my foes will rejoice when I fall. But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me. Notice the difference between the first few sentences and the last few.
3. Thankfulness only applies when God makes life easy or pleasant.
A. It is easy to give thanks when things are going good, it is much more difficult to give thanks when things are going bad.
B. One man said, “Pressure from outside sources can be a good thing. God uses circumstances to change and develop us, leading us toward a deeper relationship with Christ.”
C. Easy for him to say. Am I grateful for the problems that break me of a reliance on my own strength? To be honest, I am most thankful when I can see how God has helped me out a situation. When God makes me life easier or better. This is a challenge, to be thankful for any situation that makes me rely more on Christ than before.
D. Now God doesn’t require us to be happy (emotions, feelings) about difficulties, but he does require us to practice thankfulness in the midst of them. How do we do that? By controlling our wills.
E. I went to work at Wal-Mart for 3 months unloading trucks. Hard work! Many of my coworkers would gripe and complain. I continued to pray, “Lord I am so thankful for this job.” It did help me to work through many of my frustrations.
F. 2 Corinthians 12:10- That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
G. Poem - Count your blessings instead of your crosses, Count your gains instead of your losses. Count your joy instead of your woes; Count your friends instead of your foes. Count your smiles instead of your tears; count your courage instead of your fears. Count your full years instead of your lean; count your kind deeds instead of your mean. Count your health instead of your wealth, Count on God instead of yourself.
G. The recent problems in our economy can be used as a wakeup call for us all. Maybe this current anxiety will turn many eyes toward God. The church is often at its best in tragedy and calamity. In 1867, many banks and factories were closing in America. Because of these problems, Jeremiah Lanphier started a prayer meeting in a church in New York City. Starting with 6, it topped 6,000 by the late winter. And this was just in New York City. Before that revival ran its course in 1868, a million people had been added to the church. It is called the praying revival.
H. 6 months ago I left a ministry of 6 years. It has not been easy. However, because of this my family is stronger and my boys are talking about things of the faith. I have gotten to know my children and wife better. Because of this, I was lead to this church. You took my children in and have given them a home. You have been a big part of my therapy. Because of this, I realize that the church does not rest on one person’s personality. The Lord grows the church and not a fallible man. Because of this, I look on my ministry of preaching and teaching as something I have to do, instead of something I am supposed to be doing. I am thankful that it happened! Because of this, we are going to Monterey Louisiana in a few days to join them in the work of the church there. I am sure I will learn even more there!
I. Also, because of this, I can trust even more in God’s care and provision. When this happened 6 months ago, we had no finances. We are in better shape today then I could have ever imagined. Our house payments are up to date and we are in good financial shape heading into Louisiana. It was amazing to see how the Lord provided!
J. 1 Samuel 24 gives the story of King Saul hunting down David among the caves in the Desert of Judah. This was not a good time for David but shortly after this (while still hiding out like a fugitive in the wilderness) he writes Psalm 57: Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills {his purpose} for me. He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me; God sends his love and his faithfulness. I am in the midst of lions; I lie among ravenous beasts— men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth. They spread a net for my feet— I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path— but they have fallen into it themselves. My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make music. Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.
