Intro: Alex Haley, the author of "Roots," had an unusual picture hanging on his office wall. It was a picture of a turtle on top of a fence post. When asked, "Why is that there?" Alex Haley answered, "Every time I write something significant, every time I read my words & think that they are wonderful, & begin to feel proud of myself, I look at the turtle on top of the fence post & remember that he didn’t get there on his own. He had help."
That is the basis of thankfulness - to remember that we got here with the help of God, & that He is the provider of every blessing we have. SOURCE: Melvin Newland, Minister, Central Christian Church, Brownsville, TX.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Why is it God’s will for us to give thanks? Because it our attitude toward our daily life that makes us miserable or marvelous. It is how we look at the day that determines whether it is ministry or misery. We determine with our attitude whether what we face each morning is a blessing or a burden.
Adrian Rogers clearly communicated that there are four levels of living
1) People in the lowest level constantly complain. These folks are always griping and complaining. Rather than being humbly grateful, they’re grumbly hateful.
2) The second level is just a tad higher. These are not people who are constantly complaining; they just never give thanks for anything. They take things for granted.
3) The third level are those who thank God for the obvious blessings, when things are going good and everything is fine.
4) But the fourth level, the highest level, are those who give thanks always for all things. This is the attitude that will change your life.
God designed us to live on the highest level. One of His greatest gifts to us is choice. We can choose which level we live on.
I. Gratitude is an attitude missing in the lost
Romans 1:21 “For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened.”
A sure road to stinking thinking is a lack of gratitude toward God. It is when we live in grumbling like the children of Israel that we invite disaster. We begin to think wrong about everything. We think wrong about our money, about our decisions, relationships and especially we think wrong about God. What we think about God affects everything we do.
Mumbling and grumbling is inappropriate use of the breath God gave us.
Benjamin Franklin said, “The sentence which has most influenced my life is, ‘Some people grumble because God placed thorns among roses. Why not thank God because He placed roses among thorns?’
II. Gratitude is an antidote for deceitful emotions
Ephesians 4.23 tells us that we were taught to have a new attitude then goes on to tell us to get rid of bitterness, hot tempers, anger, Ephesians 5:18-20 tells us that one of the ways that we know that we are filled with the Spirit is to thank God the father for everything in the name of Jesus.
Philippians 4.6 tells us that an antidote to our anxiety is giving thanks to God!
The Holy Spirit enables us to live above what we feel. God never tells us to feel grateful. Instead he commands us to be grateful.
Ephesians 4:21-22 “You have certainly heard his message and have been taught his ways. The truth is in Jesus. You were taught to change the way you were living. The person you used to be will ruin you through desires that deceive you”
In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks is in the present imperative calling us to ongoing action. It is also in the active voice which calls for personal choice. Regardless of how you feel if you are going to be thankful it will require a personal choice every moment!!
If you do not have gratitude in your daily life then it is an indication of serious spiritual illness. Gratitude is the loving response of a person experiencing God’s grace and blessings.
Gratitude is a choice. Paul is trying to tell us if we choose to be thankful then the way we feel will change. It is similar to husbands and wives. Sometimes we don’t feel in love. But if we do things that are loving then our feelings will change. Never forget feelings fool us that is why by faith we thank God!!!
There are all types of prescriptions for overwhelming emotions pills, counseling, etc. God gives His prescription of giving thanks in order to heal our overwhelming emotions.
III. Gratitude is an acknowledgement of God’s blessings
Why give thanks? We give thanks because of God’s rich blessing! “In everything”
Psalm 68.19 “Thanks be to the Lord, who daily carries our burdens for us. God is our salvation
A) In suffering
The only monument in the world built in the shape of a bug, to honor a bug is located in Fort Rucker, Alabama. In 1915 the Mexican boll weevil invaded Southeast Alabama and destroyed 60% of the cotton crop. In desperation, the farmers turned to planting peanuts. By 1917 the peanut industry had become so profitable that the county harvested more peanuts than any other county in the nation. In gratitude, the people of the town erected a statue and
inscribed these words,
"In profound appreciation of the boll weevil, and what it has done as the herald of prosperity." The instrument of their suffering had become the means of their blessing.
According to James the brother of Jesus the pressures and problems of our lives are designed to make us look to God.
B) In sorrow
Job experienced suffering, loss, and sorrow and if we were to see it happen today we would not be surprised to see him demonstrate frustration, aggravation, impatience etc.
However what did he display? Job 1.20-21 “Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head.[d] He fell to the ground and worshiped, saying: Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will leave this life. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Praise the name of Yahweh. Grateful praise!!
IV. Gratitude is admission to satisfaction
Thankful people are joy filled people. Someone once said happiness depends on what happens joy depends on the Lord. In our life faith says please and praise says thank you.
2 Peter 2:9 “However, you are chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, people who belong to God. You were chosen to tell about the excellent qualities of God, who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
There is so much here from Peter we could spend months just thanking and praising God. But notice that you were chosen as a royal priesthood. The priesthood in the old testament offered sacrifices to God. What you will discover is what Adrian Rogers once said. God is so much interested in making you happy and healthy as He is making you holy.
The true pleasure of this life comes from living as God designed and intended for you to live.
That design is to offer to Him sacrifices of praise.
Hebrews 13:15, 16 “Through Jesus we should always bring God a sacrifice of praise, that is, words that acknowledge him. 16Don’t forget to do good things for others and to share what you have with them. These are the kinds of sacrifices that please God.”
Psalm 16:11 “You reveal the path of life to me; in Your presence is abundant joy; in Your right hand are eternal pleasures.” (This passage in psalms is pointing not to the next life but the full life Jesus promised us in John 10:10)
Are we given a specific way to enter the presence of God? Psalm 100:4 “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name.”
Psalm 36:8 “God, Your faithful love is so valuable that people take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They are filled from the abundance of Your house;You let them drink from Your refreshing stream.”
Psalm 63.5 “You satisfy me as with rich food; my mouth will praise You with joyful lips.
Dennis Prager, author of the shrewd and perceptive "Happiness is a Serious Problem."
He states: "There is a ’secret to happiness, and it is gratitude. All happy people are grateful, and ungrateful people cannot be happy. We tend to think that it is being unhappy that leads people to complain, but it is truer to say that it is complaining that leads to people to becoming unhappy. Become grateful and you will become a much happier person."
What can we do to cultivate gratitude in our daily life?
1) Decide to make a habit of thanking God in prayer at least once a day
2) Determine how you will thank God for your financial stability, tithe, offerings etc
3) Deal with people graciously as God deals with you
4) Do away with ungracious thinking or speaking. (Basket on the Lord’s table)
What should gratitude do in our life?
Decrease our grumbling
Increase our giving
Energize our serving
Maximize our vision
Revitalize our testimony
Supersize our joy
Maximize God!
Gratitude is an appropriate grasp of all God has done and is doing for us accompanied by the appropriate attitude of thanks for his activity.
