The Attitude of Gratitude

Notes
Transcript

Story...

I met a woman recently who has a most amazing ministry. She travels the world over giving hope to the afflicted, those whose very existence is compromised by there inability to walk. Her ministry provides these mobility means by providing much needed crutches and wheel chairs for these folks. In addition, she is saving souls in the process, bringing the Word of God to these same souls and their families. She has traveled to some of the most undesirable places in Central and South America, Africa and the Middle East to name a few, sometimes living in tents. Through her foundation, she has touch millions of people. You never know what you can accomplish until you try. Her story is one of thanksgiving and salvation. I’ll get back to her shortly.
​

Gratefulness

If someone asked you what it means to be grateful, how would you respond?
Would you tell them that it’s about being thankful for the many blessings that have come in your life: how you grew up in a loving home with great parents and brothers and sisters; how you were able to attend a good school and go on to college and pursue the career of your dreams; how you met the love of your life and now have a beautiful home and loving children; that you live in the freest country in the world and can worship how you choose. Life is good! God is good! All the time! Right?
Gratitude is described or defined in this way: Natural expression of thanks in response to blessings, protection, or love. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, gratitude is not a tool used to manipulate the will of God. It is never coerced or fabricated in one’s mind; rather, gratitude is a joyful commitment of one’s personality to God.
In the OT, thanksgiving to God was the only condition in which life could be enjoyed. For Jews, every aspect of creation provided evidence of God’s lordship over all life. The Hebrew people thanked God for the magnificence of the universe (Pss 19:1–4; 33:6–9; 104:1–24).

1  The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

2  Day to day pours out speech,

and night to night reveals knowledge.

3  There is no speech, nor are there words,

whose voice is not heard.

4  Their voice goes out through all the earth,

and their words to the end of the world.

6  By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,

and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

7  He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;

he puts the deeps in storehouses.

8  Let all the earth fear the LORD;

let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

9  For he spoke, and it came to be;

he commanded, and it stood firm.

When they received good news they thanked God for his goodness and great deeds (1 Chr 16:8–12).

8  Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name;

make known his deeds among the peoples!

9  Sing to him, sing praises to him;

tell of all his wondrous works!

10  Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!

11  Seek the LORD and his strength;

seek his presence continually!

12  Remember the wondrous works that he has done,

his miracles and the judgments he uttered,

Throughout scripture, we read that gratitude was such a vital part of Israel’s religion that it pervaded most ceremonies and customs. Thank offerings acknowledged blessings from God (Lv 7:12, 13; 22:29; Ps 50:14). Shouts of joy (Ps 42:4), songs of praise (145:7; 149:1), and music and dance (150:3–5) all of this added to the spirit of thanksgiving in worship. Feasts and festivals were celebrated in remembrance of God’s steadfast love throughout their history (Dt 16:9–15; 2 Chr 30:21, 22). King David even appointed levitical priests to offer God thanks.
And we continue those traditions today throughout our worship.
​
In the NT, things change a little bit; well, something was added. The object of thanksgiving now turns to the love of God expressed in the redemptive-work of Christ. The apostle Paul thanked God for that gift of grace (1 Cor 1:4; 2 Cor 9:15)

4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus,

15 Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

Gratitude for love and faith among believers is spread throughout his letters (Rom 6:17; Eph 1:15, 16; Phil 1:3–5; Col 1:3, 4; 1 Thes 1:2, 3).

15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,

Because the expression of gratitude is tied so closely to the response of faith, Paul encouraged believers to give thanks in all things (Rom 14:6; 1 Thes 5:18).

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

He commanded Christians to pray with thanksgiving (Phil 4:6; Col 4:2) in the name of Christ, who has made all thanksgiving possible (Eph 5:20).

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

So, when we read all of these verses we acknowledge that we are being called to live lives filled with gratitude; having an “attitude of gratitude” if you will.
Let us pray...
I believe, Lord, that you are here present. Although my eyes do not see you, my faith senses you. Take any stray thoughts from my mind. Make me to understand the truths which you wish to teach me in this meditation. Let me make up my mind to put them into practice. Your servant is listening; speak, Lord, to my soul. Amen.
​

Good Days

I painted a pretty picture with that life I described a few minutes ago, didn’t I? But, is life always flowing with milk and honey? Does everything always come up roses? You better believe it doesn’t!
But, don’t all of us really want every day to be a “good day”? Come on, I know I can’t be the only one here! Don’t our prayers reflect that? Don’t we pray for success in our meetings; in our endeavors? Don’t we pray for safety / smooth sailing? That we don’t fall ill or get hurt? Sure we do! And, I’m not saying there is anything wrong with that. What I am saying is, that if every day was a good day, there would be no good days because there would be no bad days to compare them to. It’s the bad days that help us appreciate the good days. Now, I’m not sadistic and I’m not telling you we should pray for bad days. But, the bad days will eventually come!
Sickness helps us appreciate health. Failure helps us appreciate success. Debt helps us appreciate wealth. Tough times help us appreciate the good times. Our worst days can become our best days! They help us to see God at work and to give thanks!

PERSONAL REFLECTION

Walter Kaufmann: “It makes for a better life if one has a rendezvous with death.”
I’m a different person for having endured all of these things!
​

No Adversity, No Opportunity

Adversity has a way of bringing out the best in us, doesn’t it? We’ve all heard of folks doing miraculous things when faced with adverse conditions: running into burning buildings, lifting cars off someone. How about during this pandemic where folks have lost a job and then pivoted to something more fulfilling and it being even better, a lot of them serving others; how companies have retooled to become useful during these time, making PPE that is so needed. Adversity is often a blessing in disguise. It teaches humility.
But, adversity can also produce an increased capacity to serve God. Ask yourself, “What adversity have I been experiencing?” How can I use this to serve God? Many former addicts have become substance abuse counselors; people touched by domestic violence have started abuse shelters; those touched by rape / abortion have become some of the greatest advocates in the Pro-Life movement.
God wants to recycle your adversity and turn it into ministry. You’ve heard it said, “No pain, no gain”? God is in the business of turning your pain into someone else’s gain!
God wants to remodel your life. After a bone is broken it needs to be reset. The resulting bone after it heals is stronger than before it was broken. Rarely does a bone break again in the same place. Just like that bone, God breaks us where we need to be broken. He fractures our pride, our lust, our addictions, our anger and then remodels us into His image. Where have you been broken? Remember, after God remodels you, you will be stronger than before!
​

What Are We Afraid of?

Many of us are stuck in a rut doing the same old thing, day in and day out. We yearn for something more, something more fulfilling but, we feel obligated to “stick it out” for one reason or another. We have families to worry about, some have created debts to pay, peer pressure keeps us in check; even our church members can be sources of guilt. Mark Batterson, author of “In a Pit, With a Lion, On a Snowy Day” says that, “One of the greatest things that can happen to you is for your fear to become a reality.” Having to actually face our fears can provide the freedom we’ve been looking for! Half of spiritual growth is learning what we don’t know. The other half is unlearning what we do know. It is the failure to unlearn irrational fears and misconceptions that keeps us from becoming who God wants us to be. Faith is the process of unlearning irrational fears.
But, too many of us pray as if God’s primary objective is to keep us from getting scared. But, the goal of life is not the elimination of fear. The goal is to muster the moral courage to face those fears.
Danish Philosopher and theologian, Soren Kierkegaard, went so far as to say that “boredom is the root of all evil” because it means we are refusing to be who God made us to be. If you’re bored, one thing is for sure: You’re not following in the footsteps of Christ!
Think about this: Are you living your life in a way that is worth telling stories about? After all, the scariest stories make the best stories! If you take a second to reflect on your life, you’ll discover that the greatest experiences are often the scariest, and the scariest experiences are often the greatest.
But instead of having the courage to look our fears in the eye, we cower and complain. Satan has two primary tactics to neutralize us spiritually: discouragement and fear. He wants us to focus on our past mistakes and failures so we will be paralyzed to take action. But, 1 John 4:18 holds the key for us. The goal of our Father’s love for us is Fearlessness! As we grow in our love relationship with God, we unlearn fears that paralyze us and neutralize us spiritually. That is the essence of faith.
Now here’s some good news: Psychiatrists assume as fact that we are born with only two innate fears: the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. All other fears are learned fears. And, if learned then, they can be unlearned.
Faith is unlearning the senseless worries and misguided beliefs that keep us captive. It is far more complex than simple behavior modification. Faith involves synaptogenesis; the rewiring of the human brain.
When we read scripture something remarkable happens. We stop thinking human / worldly thoughts and start thinking God thoughts.
- Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. - Romans 12:2
- like a computer’s hard drive needs to be defragmented from time to time to optimize performance, so our minds need this also. Upgrading / optimizing our minds involves downloading scripture.
- Let this mind be in you which is also in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 2:5
- Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. - Colossians 3:16
We have to stop praying those safe prayers; stop asking God to get us out of difficult experiences and start asking Him what He wants us to get out of those difficult circumstances. We should be praying dangerous prayers! Instead of simply asking God to do something for you, ask him to reveal something in you. Praying this prayer will convict you! If we could see what God sees, we would pray very different prayers!
​

Worship is the Way Out!

Maybe prayer is less about changing our circumstances than it is about changing our perspective. Most of our problems aren’t the byproduct of our circumstances but, of our perspective on our circumstances.
The circumstances we complain about become chains that imprison us. Usually, when we get into a spiritual or emotional slump, it’s because we’ve zoomed in on something, something we don’t like about ourselves or someone else or our circumstances. 9 out of 10 times the solution is zooming out to get some perspective. So, how do we do that? One word: WORSHIP!
Worship is the way out. It is the best way to re-frame a problem. So, don’t let what’s wrong with you, keep you from worshipping what is right with God!
In acts 16 we find the story of Paul and Silas in Philipi where they were preaching the gospel and cast out a demon from a woman. Her handlers took offense to that and had them arrested, beaten and thrown into the inner-most part of the jail, their feet in stocks. Now, for most of us, we would be pretty ticked off at God about then. We’re doing everything right and this is what happens. But, let’s pick up in verse 25 and see what happens.

Paul and Silas

Acts 16:25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.
35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.
Worship really is the way out!
Worship is zooming out and refocusing on the big picture.
Re-framing problems is about shifting focus. You stop focusing on what’s wrong with your circumstances. And, you start focusing on what’s right with God.
2000 years ago Jesus died for my sins. God loves me unconditionally, no matter what. I have eternity with God to look forward to, no mourning and no sorrow and no pain
Worship is forgetting about what’s wrong with you and remembering what’s right with God
Like hitting the refresh key on a computer, it restores the joy of your salvation, re-calibrates your spirit, renews your mind, and enables you to find something good to praise God about.
It’s easy, right? Absolutely not!
However, the purest form of worship is praising God when you don’t feel like it; because it proves that your worship is not circumstantial.
Consider Paul and Silas again. Easy to worship? Not!
Worship, then, changes the spiritual atmosphere.
Worship charges the spiritual atmosphere!
When you worship God in the worst of circumstances, you never know what is going to happen next.
Worship is the highest form of thanksgiving!
​

And Now, The Rest of the Story

The woman I mentioned in the beginning is Joni Eareckson Tada. I met her through reading her book, “When God Weeps: Why Our suffering Matters to the Almighty”. Although I have not met her in person, the way she writes lets you into her private world; it’s as if you get to know her personally. Joni has been in a wheelchair since breaking her neck at age 16, leaving her paralyzed from the neck down; totally dependent on others. But, her hunger for the Lord led her out of her personal darkness to be a light to so many. She did not allowed her unique circumstances to paralyze her actions. Instead she used them as a springboard to the best God had for her. Her disability became a great ministry.

Response-Ability

I’ll leave you with one final thought.
In his book, Man’s Search for Meaning”, Holocaust survivor Victor Frankl makes some startling revelations. He said, “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms - to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.”
The most important choice you can make everyday is your attitude. Your internal attitudes are far more important than your external circumstances. Joy, literally, is mind over matter! Have you ever heard it said that your attitude determines your altitude?
But, how we feel is not circumstantial, it’s perceptual. Our feelings are determined by our subjective focus. For example, there are basically two types of people in the world: Complainers and worshippers. Complainers will always find something to complain about. Worshipers will always find something to praise God about. Not much circumstantial difference between the two. The outcome of your life will be determined by your outlook on life.
So, are you going to continue to complain about your circumstances; about quarantine; about having to wear a mask; about whatever adversity comes your way? Or, are you going to look for that silver lining and find something to praise God about?
You can begin here in Romans 5:8, “...but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
I hope you choose to live lives of gratitude and worship your Lord and Savior all day, every day!
God loves you my brothers and sisters and so do I!
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more
Copyright 2024 Logos Bible SoftwareFeatures|Pricing|Privacy|Terms of Use|Support