THANK YOU LORD!

THANK YOU LORD

INTRODUCTION

We have so much to be thankful for.
Sometimes it takes a tragedy before we realise what we have and how much it means to us.
My father once said to me that at the end of the day the most important thing in our lives is our relationships and especially those with our family.
Materialism has taken a knock all around the world and suddenly these vital aspects are becoming more of a reality.
Our family and the relationships we have are a valuable treasure to us and we need to be thankful.
God has also been so good to us and that is another reason that we can be thankful.
Find something to be thankful about and lets begin to be thankful today!

There is so much that we can be thankful for.
Sometimes we may feel that life has dealt us a raw deal and we have to carry an unfair load. But I have come to realise that we all have things that we can be thankful for and it comes down to what we focus on.
If we focus on the need, lack or difficulty, it robs us of appreciating the good, the wonderful and the special things, that we can be thankful for.
There is an old song with the following words: ‘Count your blessing, name them one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.’
Lets start today by counting our blessings.
What have to got to be thankful for?
Respond by allowing appreciation and thankfulness to well up from within you.
We have so much to be thankful for.

We can direct our thankfulness to the one who is the source of all good gifts.
We can speak out our thankfulness to God, by simply telling Him how thankful we are.
Psalm 105:1-2 Thank the Lord for all the glorious things he does; proclaim them to the nations. Sing his praises and tell everyone about his miracles.
Isaiah 12:4-5 “Thank the Lord! Praise his name! Tell the world about his wondrous love. How mighty he is!” Sing to the Lord, for he has done wonderful things. Make known his praise around the world.
Our thankfulness needs to be directed towards God.
When we fill our hearts and minds with the negative that we are exposed to, we begin to question God.
But when we allow thankfulness to arise in our hearts we open the way to receive even more from Him, even if it is in our difficulty and distress.
Direct your thankfulness towards God.
Psalm 118:1 Oh, thank the Lord, for He’s so good! His loving-kindness is forever.
Psalm 7:17 Oh, how grateful and thankful I am to the Lord because he is so good. I will sing praise to the name of the Lord who is above all lords.

Thankfulness is something that begins in our hearts.
It is an attitude that says, God has been good and I am so grateful.
If we think that we are self-made and have found success for ourselves, we only fool ourselves. For God is the one who makes these things possible.
When we come to the realisation that we are dependent on God, that dependence brings us to the point of thankfulness.
Thankfulness is the human response to God’s love, kindness and favour.
Thankfulness is a sign of a tender heart.
A tender heart is an important aspect in the eyes of God.
God works with those who have tender and teachable hearts.
Is your heart full of thankfulness to God today?

Thankfulness offers us an alternative way of life. You may be used to grumbling and moaning or perhaps you are a source of constant negativity.
There is an alternative.
Ephesians 5:4 Dirty stories, foul talk, and coarse jokes-these are not for you. Instead, remind each other of God’s goodness, and be thankful.
Dirty stories, foul talk, and coarse jokes seem to be the order of the day in our society and around the world.
But here in this scripture we see an alternative: ‘remind each other of God’s goodness, and be thankful.’

I once heard someone say that a diet is not a short-term program, but it needs to become a way of life.
We need certain lifestyles in our lives if we are going to maintain the standard that God has given us. These lifestyles are not ritual or forced things that we do. It is really only a shift in focus.
Colossians 3:15 Let the peace of heart that comes from Christ be always present in your hearts and lives, for this is your responsibility and privilege as members of his body. And always be thankful.
We need to allow thankfulness always to be present in our hearts.
We need to always be thankful, not just when things are going well.
Psalm 95:2-8 Come before him with thankful hearts. Let us sing him psalms of praise. For the Lord is a great God, the great King of all gods. He controls the formation of the depths of the earth and the mightiest mountains; all are his. He made the sea and formed the land; they too are his. Come, kneel before the Lord our Maker, for he is our God. We are his sheep, and he is our Shepherd. Oh, that you would hear him calling you today and come to him! Don’t harden your hearts.

If we are thankful, it is as if we have a new source of strength, which enables us to carry on. Whereas negativity and complaining make us weak, thankfulness brings us strength.
Colossians 1:11-14 We are praying, too, that you will be filled with his mighty, glorious strength so that you can keep going no matter what happens-always full of the joy of the Lord, and always thankful to the Father who has made us fit to share all the wonderful things that belong to those who live in the Kingdom of light. For he has rescued us out of the darkness and gloom of Satan’s kingdom and brought us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who bought our freedom with his blood and forgave us all our sins.

Colossians 4:2 Don’t be weary in prayer; keep at it; watch for God’s answers, and remember to be thankful when they come.
In those areas where you are trusting God, thankfulness plays an important role.
Thankfulness is one of the ways in which we express our faith, trust and confidence in God.
Thankfulness enriches our lives.
Colossians 3:16 Remember what Christ taught, and let his words enrich your lives and make you wise; teach them to each other and sing them out in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing to the Lord with thankful hearts.

Thankfulness pleases God.
In Biblical history, whenever the people of Israel began to moan and grumble God became displeased.
On the other hand thankfulness pleases God.
Hebrews 12:28 Since we have a Kingdom nothing can destroy, let us please God by serving him with thankful hearts and with holy fear and awe.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
James 5:13 those who have reason to be thankful should continually be singing praises to the Lord.
Psalm 100:4-5 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endures to all generations.

By: Andrew W Roebert

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