Intro: I read the story of a man who was accused of a crime he didn’t commit, and because he didn’t have fancy lawyers, he went to prison. He spent 19 years there, and although he didn’t do what they say he did, he decided to make the most of it. He learned to speak Spanish and play seven instruments and earned a college degree. He came up for parole four times, and even though he learned to do these civilized things and behaved well, they weren’t good enough reasons for the parole board to let him go. They didn’t care that he could speak Spanish. But then someone went digging around the case file and evidence box and convinced a judge to look at them. After the judge did, he realized the man had been telling the truth. After nineteen years, he was free to go. So he walked out of prison. And even though his kids were all grown up, and he and his wife had missed 19 years of living together, and he had every reason to be nasty and throw a fit, he didn’t. When the newspaper reporter asked what he thought, he said this: “I’m thankful to be home. God is still good.”
For some of us, being thankful doesn’t come naturally. Sure, it’s easy to be grateful when the sun is shining and the birds are singing a jolly happy song. But life’s not always like that. I am thinking about those who suddenly lost their houses, valuable things, and even their loved ones. Life is hard for them right now before their homes are rebuilt and before they get help from the government and their insurance companies.
Is it possible to give thanks in all circumstances? Yes, it is because “Giving Thanks is a Choice of Attitude!” I’ll show some examples in the Bible of how gratitude is a choice of attitude and is not determined by our life circumstances:
1. Job. Let’s read Job 1:13-21. He lost everything he had. He didn’t have insurance to cover the loss. Not only that all of his children died suddenly. Job didn't have the Bible that taught him about who God is. He didn’t know that later God would bless him 10 times. And yet this is how he responded to his tragedy “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” JOB WAS NOT IN DENIAL! He knew and he was fully aware that he had lost his properties and all of his children. And yet he chose to give praise to the Lord.
2. Habakkuk. Habakkuk expresses the attitude that many righteous people have. He is outraged at the violence and injustice in his society. He lists six different problems. His list is repetitious, but it emphasizes just how bad things were. There was sin, wickedness, destruction, and violence, no justice in the courts, and the wicked outnumbered the righteous. Does this sound like our society? Habakkuk was wrestling with a difficult issue. If God is good, then why is there evil in the world? And if there has to be evil, then why does the evil prosper? What is God doing in the world? While Habakkuk begins by wondering or worrying about the world around him and God’s seeming indifference, he ends by worshiping God. Let’s read Habakkuk 3:16-18. Warren Wiersbe entitles his book on Habakkuk as ‘From Worry to Worship.” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones calls his, “From Fear to Faith.”
3. Apostle Paul. In his lifetime, Paul was imprisoned, shipwrecked, beaten, hungry, run out of town, and abandoned by his friends. Nonetheless, he said to give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Thanksgiving prayer is simply offering thanks to God. Paul is thought to have written 13 books in the New Testament, and of those 13, 10 of them include thanksgiving prayer. Yes, 10 out of 13. That’s a lot of Thanksgiving!
4. Jesus Christ. Jesus knew that soon He would be captured, mocked, beaten, and crucified on the cross. He knew that even though He prayed asking His Father to take away the cup, that was not according to the Father’s will. In that situation, Jesus gave thanks to the Father. Matthew 26:26 “While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
I hope those four examples in the Bible convince us enough to believe that “Giving Thanks is a Choice of Attitude!” A grateful heart is not determined by life’s situations or our emotions but by a choice of our hearts. ALL OF US HAVE PROBLEMS. WE HAVE A CHOICE OF HOW WE RESPOND TO THEM: TO DENY THEM (WE PRETEND THAT EVERYTHING IS OK), TO COMPLAIN ABOUT THEM ALL THE TIME OR TO GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD!
Let’s learn from Job, Habakkuk, Paul, and Jesus who chose to give thanks and praise to God in the difficult situation. Choosing to be thankful brings many benefits:
- Dr. Dale Robbins says, “I used to think people complained because they had a lot of problems. But I have come to realize that they have problems because they complain. Complaining doesn’t change anything or make situations better. It amplifies frustration, spreads discontent and discord, and can invoke an invitation for the devil to cause havoc with our lives.” Complaining makes us miserable. No wonder Psalm 77:3b says, “I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed” (NKJV).
- John Henry Jowett said, “Gratitude is a vaccine, an antitoxin, and an antiseptic.” He’s right. Gratitude can be a vaccine that can prevent the invasion of a disgruntled attitude. As antitoxin prevents the disastrous effects of certain poisons and diseases, gratitude destroys the poison of faultfinding and grumbling. When trouble has smitten us, a spirit of thanksgiving is a soothing antiseptic.
- A grateful heart makes us stronger, and happier and enables us to face challenges in our lives. Recent findings show that even in the face of tremendous loss or tragedy, it's possible to feel gratitude. Adversity can boost gratitude, said Psychologist Emmons. In a web-based survey tracking the personal strengths of more than 3,000 American respondents, researchers noted an immediate surge in feelings of gratitude after Sept. 11, 2001. Why would such a tragic event provoke gratitude, and what is its impact? Christopher Peterson, PhD, the University of Michigan psychologist who posted the survey, attributes this surge in gratitude among Americans post-9/11 to a sense of increased belonging. These feelings offered more than community building. “Gratitude in the aftermath of 9/11 helped buffer people against the negative effects of stress, making them less likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder,” explains Emmons.
Closing: In 1620, 102 Pilgrims had come to this continent to build a new world where they would be free to worship God. Soon fifty-six died due to starvation, disease, and the cold winter. They had no homes & no government agency to help them build homes. They had no means of transportation but their legs. Their only food came from the sea & the forest, & they had to get it for themselves. They had no money & no place to spend it if they had any. They had no amusements except what they made for themselves, no means of communication with their relatives in England, and no social security or Medicare. However, they did not give up. In 1621, 46 Pilgrims and 91 Indians met to give thanks for a bountiful harvest and the preservation of their lives. They had every reason to be depressed and discouraged, but they chose to give thanks.
Let’s give thanks to the Lord. Remember:
We are loved by God (John 3:16)
We are forgiven. (Ephesians 1:7)
We are saved. (Ephesians 2:8)
We are redeemed. (Galatians 3:13-14)
We are not condemned. (Romans 8:1)
We are children of God. (John 1:12)
