Psalm 92:1-2 “It
is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to Your name,
O Most High; to declare Your loving-kindness in the morning, and Your
faithfulness every night.”
Pastor Obie continues his
message on thankfulness by stating that it is good to give thanks to God
because it refocuses your mind and your thoughts, taking the focus off of you.
When you focus on yourself less, you become selfless; which is the strongest
attribute to the highest love, known as “agape” (selfless, sacrificial,
unconditional love). Here are some scientific studies about being mindful of
what you are thankful for and writing them down. Finding show that in gratitude
there are measurable positive outcomes from it. Those who practice gratitude
and were mindful of thankfulness are physically and mentally more healthy. Overall,
they are happier. The command from God to be thankful is scientifically proven
to be good for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice
always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is
the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
The Second way to train for
thankfulness is to share your thanks with others. Colossians 2:6-7 says, “As you therefore have received
Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and
established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with
thanksgiving.” Our thanksgiving will overflow from you to others, bringing
positivity and joy to those around you. There is so much negativity in the
world today; we are surrounded depressing, pessimistic and harmful influences.
When you share with others the things that you are thankful for, you become a
“breath of fresh air” to the world around you and inspire to focus on the
positive things in their life. There is a psychological explanation in that
humans have a tendency to focus on the negative, intuitively paying attention
to dangers and sense threats in our environment as a survival instinct. So, we
need to choose to counter this inclination. Life is 10% what happens to you and
90% how you respond to it.
Philippians 4:6-8 “ Do
not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and
petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace
of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts
and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is
true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is
lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think
about such things.”
Satan (the devil) wants you
to not focus on the things that you have and steal your thankfulness by having
you focus on what you do not have. It is a matter of choosing your perspective.
Are you going to focus on the glass half empty and complain or focus on the
glass half full and give thanks? It is a choice to have an attitude of
gratitude with a God-honoring mindset. Complaining happens when you pay more
attention to the problems that you have than the God that has you.
The third way
to train for thankfulness is to show your thanks immediately and consistently. Gratitude
is truly valuing kindness received. Put action to your thankfulness. We all have two great
psychological needs in life. (1) We need to feel capable and competent. (2) We
need to feel connected – valued, appreciated, wanted and needed. Positive
affirmation is much more powerful than negative condemnation. Encouraging good behavior produces far better
results than punishing bad behavior. When someone is recognized for a positive
action, they are more likely to repeat that action again. Social worthiness
spreads to others. Sometimes, circumstances in life are hard and ugly, but we
can give in thanks in the peace of the Lord. Having gratitude helps you get
through any circumstance with joy. Pastor Obie’s wish is that God’s love, joy
and peace fall upon you.
2 Corinthians 4:15 “For all
things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the
many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.”
In Christ, Brian
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