Enduring People
Grateful • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 18 viewsGrateful people are enduring people. Grateful people are generous people. Grateful people are joyful people. Grateful people are hopeful people.
Notes
Transcript
Grateful: People are Enduring people
Communion:
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.” 27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Grateful: People are Enduring people
Is your Grateful tank full or is it empty and running on fumes.
"Grateful" means feeling or showing an appreciation for something done or received. It's an acknowledgment of kindness or benefit and a sense of thankfulness and appreciation.
Our default feeling when we have to endure hardship as humans is usually not gratefulness.
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
"Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift. It liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation." – John Ortberg
"Gratitude turns what we have into enough." – Aesop
Aesop was a Greek fabulist and storyteller credited with a number of fables now collectively known as Aesop's Fables.
"The struggle ends when gratitude begins." – Neale Donald Walsch
Before writing the Conversations With God series, Walsch worked variously as a radio station program director, newspaper managing editor, and in marketing and public relations. In the early 1990s he suffered a series of crushing blows—a fire that destroyed all of his belongings, the break-up of his marriage, and a car accident that left him with a broken neck.[citation needed] Once recovered, but alone and unemployed, he was forced to live in a tent in Jackson Hot Springs, just outside Ashland, Oregon, collecting and recycling aluminium cans in order to eat. At the time, he thought his life had come to an end. Despondent, he began his writings after working his way out of homelessness and following a stint as a radio talk show host.
List 10 things you are grateful for:
As we endure the challenges of this world how do we become more
How does gratefulness help a christ follower endure?
Focus on Eternal Hope
Gratefulness keeps the focus on the eternal hope and promises of God. This eternal perspective helps believers endure present suffering, knowing that it is temporary and that greater things await them in eternity
16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Witness to Others
A grateful attitude in the face of trials serves as a powerful witness to others. It demonstrates the strength and peace that come from faith in Christ, potentially drawing others to seek Him as well.
“Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for.” —Zig Ziglar
Monologue:
"Imagine, if you will, a dimly lit, cold, and damp Roman prison cell. The air is thick with the stench of decay and despair. Chains clink as I shift my weight, the cold metal biting into my skin. My only companions are the rats scurrying in the shadows and the distant echoes of guards' footsteps.
I am Paul, once a free man, now confined by the very empire I sought to spread the message of Christ to. My body aches from the beatings and the harsh conditions, but my spirit remains unbroken. Each day is a test of endurance, a battle to maintain faith in the face of relentless adversity.
Yet, even here, in this place of suffering, I find solace in my faith. I write to the Philippians, my dear friends, to share the joy and peace that surpasses all understanding. I remind them, and myself, that our trials are not in vain. They are opportunities to grow closer to God, to rely on His strength, and to find joy in the midst of suffering.
As I pen these words, I am reminded of the words of Jesus: 'Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.' My imprisonment is not a punishment but a privilege, a chance to bear witness to the power of Christ even in the darkest of places.
So, I endure, not in my own strength, but in the grace and love of God. And I encourage my fellow believers to do the same, to remain steadfast, to give thanks in all circumstances, and to trust that God's plan is always greater than our understanding."
Billy Graham: "Grumbling and gratitude are, for the child of God, in conflict. Be grateful and you won’t grumble. Grumble and you won’t be grateful."
14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing,
