Title: Attitude of Gratitude
Text: Multi-texted
Introduction: The songs we have sung today have centered around the theme of Thanksgiving.
‒ We celebrate this Thursday, Thanksgiving Day.
‒ Yet the idea of giving thanks is something that should come natural to the Christian.
‒ Not only this time of year.
‒ But I am thankful that we live in a country where we do set this day aside.
‒ this is a time of joy for families.
‒ It is a time of reflection.
‒ For some a time of sadness (loss of family members)
‒ If you do feel a little down or you soul feels somewhat impoverished, I hope today will help you.
‒ Thanksgiving can do that for you troubled soul.
‒ It opens our hearts toward God for healing and comfort to be thankful.
NOTE: Indeed those people who do not have an attitude of gratitude are some of the most miserable people you will ever find on the face of the earth.
‒ “Mark it down as an inflexible rule of human self-disclosure: The person with an ungrateful heart is the one who believes that everything God does for him is too little and anything he does for God is too much.” –Rubel Shelly
1. God approves of the attitude of gratitude.
a. Have you ever thought that the three major feast days of the Jews where all centered around the idea of Thanksgiving (These were the “big three.” Feasts that people made pilgrimages back to Jerusalem.)
1. Passover
1. Passover gave thanks for Yahweh’s deliverance of the Jews from Egypt.
2. Pentecost
1. Pentecost came at the end of barley harvest and witnessed the offering of the first-fruits to God.
3. Tabernacles
1. Tabernacles was a fall celebration at the end of harvest and thanked Yahweh for protecting their ancestors in the desert.
b. Communal Psalms would be read.
1. (Psalms 100 NIV) Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. {2} Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. {3} Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his ; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. {4} Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. {5} For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
c. Our Feast day of Thanksgiving:
1. Thanksgiving Day is a distinctively North American holiday feast.
1. It takes us back to the colonists at Plymouth, Massachusetts, in the autumn of 1621, when 90 Native Americans and the English colonists who had survived the horrible winter of 1620-1621 celebrated a bountiful first crop year with a three-day feast.
2. George Washington proclaimed the first national Day of Thanksgiving in 1789 in honor of the new Constitution.
3. During the darkest days of the American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863.
4. Only in 1941 did a joint resolution of Congress set the last Thursday in November as a legal holiday to be observed as Thanksgiving Day in the United States.
2. Just as the Israelites could look back in their history and see the deliverance and providence of God, we too can see how He has blessed our lives.
1. Not everyone can have a Thanksgiving Day!
1. OUR AFFLUENCE:
1. This nation has fertile soil
2. Abundant natural resources,
3. Great economic strength,
4. In times of crisis we have a deep sense of patriotism and we rally together.
5. We are wealthy and affluent.
1. I live in a nice house
2. Drive a nice car
3. Eat the food I want
2. THE WORLD’S POVERTY:
1. It is estimated that 23 percent of the world’s population suffers from malnutrition, illiteracy, disease, war torn surroundings, high infant mortality, and low life expectancy.
2. These people go to bed hungry every night.
3. They have no medical care.
4. They cannot read and will never be given the opportunity to.
5. They live without much hope.
2. The Christian’s Reaction (1 Timothy 6:17-18 NCV) Command those who are rich with things of this world not to be proud. Tell them to hope in God, not in their uncertain riches. God richly gives us everything to enjoy. {18} Tell the rich people to do good, to be rich in doing good deeds, to be generous and ready to share.
a. GRATITUDE We have no choice but to say, “Thank, You God!” SAY IT WITH ME!
1. “We acknowledge You God as the source of the blessings that we have in this world.”
2. When we trust in God and thank Him and acknowledge Him for the blessings we have, we have no time to be proud and look to ourselves.
1. A Psalm of personal thanksgiving: (Psalms 118:1-9 NCV) Thank the LORD because he is good. His love continues forever. {2} Let the people of Israel say, "His love continues forever." {3} Let the family of Aaron say, "His love continues forever." {4} Let those who respect the LORD say, "His love continues forever." {5} I was in trouble, so I called to the LORD. The LORD answered me and set me free. {6} I will not be afraid, because the LORD is with me. People can’t do anything to me. {7} The LORD is with me to help me, so I will see my enemies defeated. {8} It is better to trust the LORD than to trust people. {9} It is better to trust the LORD than to trust princes. {28}You are my God, and I will thank you; you are my God, and I will praise your greatness. {29} Thank the LORD because he is good. His love continues forever.
b. SHARE We have the obligation and privilege to share the abundance we have been given.
1. We need a reminder that we are blessed in order to give and share. (So many of you have given already during this season.)
2. We don’t give out of obligation, but out of Love for God and fellow man.
1. You see, we love others, and know how to love because God loved us first. We love others because of who we are in Christ Jesus, not because of who they are. We are not always lovable people, yet we are called to love in Jesus and the way He loved.
1. (1 John 4:19-21 NCV) We love because God first loved us. {20} If people say, "I love God," but hate their brothers or sisters, they are liars. Those who do not love their brothers and sisters, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have never seen. {21} And God gave us this command: Those who love God must also love their brothers and sisters.
3. Have you ever wished you had money to give to others who had a genuine need. Me too.
1. We have all been blessed in many ways. I hope that out of our blessings we can find it in our heart to bless others.
Conclusion: I hope that as we grow together that we will be thankful for all the things God is doing in our lives!
