“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise; be thankful unto Him and bless His name.”
Thankfulness is an underrated, and often unused, power in our lives. Many of our personal, family and church problems could be instantly solved by a healthy dose of thankfulness. Thankfulness can be a powerful asset in our lives and can make a lot of difference in the quality of our lives. As you read this post, ask yourself if you are a thankful person? Thankfulness has the power to affect our attitudes. For one thing, thankful people are not embittered by life. Thankful people are able to meet life’s hard and bitter moments without bitterness overtaking their lives. Bitter people are not happy people and they are not fun to be around. I read about a “taste berry” in Africa that coats the taste buds, causing everything eaten afterward to taste sweet. Thankfulness is to our souls what the “taste berry” would be to our taste buds. In the same vein, thankful people are not mean-spirited. All of us know people who are difficult to love, and who are always ready for an argument over anything. What these people need is a good dose of thankfulness to calm their souls and sweeten their spirits. Thankfulness has the power to instigate real worship. As a general rule, thankful people really want to worship God, because He is the source of their thankfulness. Thankful people have the spirit of David, who wrote: “I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord.” (Psalm 122:1) Thankless people begrudge time spent in worship. A worshipful spirit does not dwell in thankless people. Worship is not easy for them because they do not realize the depth of God’s love for them, nor do they know the difference that God can make in their lives. I think that worship comes naturally to thankful people. They do not have to force themselves to praise and worship God, for the worship of God just bubbles up within them. This is true of private and public worship. This spirit is characterized in Ephesians 5:19-20: “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making merry in your heart to the Lord. 20. Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Thankfulness has the power to make us want to serve God. Psalm 100:2 encourages us to “serve the Lord with gladness.” Thankful people serve the Lord gladly. A thankful heart frees one to serve freely. Can you imagine an unthankful person serving the Lord with a glad heart? It is difficult to imagine an unthankful person being glad to do anything that does not ultimately serve his, or her, own purpose. Thankful people willingly serve and do not begrudge the time that they spend serving the Lord. It is also true that thankful people serve the Lord effectively. Effective Christian service does not depend on mood swings. To effectively serve the Lord, we must serve Him regardless of how we feel. Thankfulness is the catalyst for this kind of service. Again, can you imagine an unthankful person serving God regardless of feelings and circumstances? Are you a thankful person based on the topics discussed above? I hope and trust that you are a thankful person and that you personally realize its power in your life. If not, pray and ask Jesus to give you a thankful spirit and see what a difference it will make in your life. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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September 2021
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