Topic: The Practice of Gratitude
Text: 1 Corinthians 15:57-58
Key verse: But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
“Enter His gates with a song of thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, bless and praise His name.” Those were the words of David a man who knew how to win in both spiritual and physical warfare. He learned from experience to practice gratitude.
In life, we go through many seasons, some through mountains of victory while some follow valleys of defeat and losses, yet in each season one thing remains constant the abiding presence of our God. Knowing these seasons will lead to another, we must embrace a daily practice of giving thanks always to God who has given us the victory that ushers us from one level to another by the perfect sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.
With hindsight, we are constantly faced with issues in our lives we would like to edit, but we must not fail to notice that what the devil meant for evil has now turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
How did we maneuver the valleys of fear and doubt if not by grace? How did we survive the fear of COVID 19 infection? How did we find food to eat without any farmland to plow? It had to be God who gave us the victory.
Get your journal and write your psalm of Thanksgiving, these success stories give you hope for the future and also brings forth a pleasing fragrance to God.
Through Him, therefore, let us at all times offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of lips that thankfully acknowledge and confess and glorify His name. Hebrews 13:15
It is a sacrifice when you offer thanksgiving to God, it is an expression of your faith in him as your source. When we fail to give thanks we are indirectly taking credit for the good that has happened to us or for us.
Jehoshaphat went to battle with thanksgiving and praise and God showed up and gave them victory, Jesus gave thanks to God, even when the loaves available to feed the people was not sufficient and God multiplied it till they had several baskets remaining and the people were full.
Jesus took the bread, gave thanks to God, and distributed it to the people who were sitting there. He did the same with the fish, and they all had as much as they wanted. John 6:11
And in the midst of everything be always giving thanks, for this is God’s perfect plan for you in Christ Jesus.1Thessalonians 5:18
Thanksgiving is God’s plan for you and me in every situation, this is how we express our faith and hope in God. How do we give thanks for our losses? When Jesus got to the home of his friend Lazarus, he found them weeping, he wept too. But when he got to the tomb, he gave thanks.
So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me. John 11:41
He gave thanks for the privilege of prayer, he considered it something to be thankful for. In that situation you are in, there is something to thank God for. That is the bridge from your past to your future.
What are you thankful for today? Make a list and sing and dance for those things, it is your sacrifice, it is an offering to God, worth more than millions of any currency, it will refresh your spirit and pave way for your next testimony.
Father, we bring a sacrifice of thanksgiving to you today for all you’ve done for us, the gift of life, health, safety, provision, and above all our salvation from sin and from bondage to Satan. We thank you that we are not alone, you’ve blessed us with the gift of family, friends, brethren, and neighbors. Thank you for all the deliverances you gave us this month, you alone deserve the praise in Jesus’ name. Amen.
For those in tears, who are giving you thanks regardless, Father comfort them and turn their sorrows to Joy, and cause their situation to bring you glory in the end in Jesus name. Amen.
Like David, as we rise at midnight to thank you Lord, may the gates of the new month usher us into a new season of Joy and laughter, victories and celebration, above all may we abide in your presence throughout the coming month going from strength to strength, glory to glory and enjoying one grace after another, in Jesus mighty name. Amen!
Roses&Thorns
