Being Grateful …
In a world where we are surrounded with negativity we need to work hard at “Being Grateful.” To be honest it is something that we learn through life and the circumstances that we face. When we face being pulled in every direction it is hard to stay true to a heart of gratitude. Yet it is the very thing that brings life to a weary soul, a smile to a broken heart, a hug to someone who just needs to be loved.
When we are able to look past our own circumstances only then can we be effective in the lives around us. That does not mean that we too do not hurt. We too also have circumstances that draw from us each day, yet when we are able to look past these things, these obstacles. We draw upon a different strength that we have learnt over the years.
It is a divine strength that no force can withstand
When we place our confidence and trust in God, His word and what we are instructed to do we find amazing peace in the middle of the storm. This is a peace that the world does not know. Our peace is based upon a different set of circumstances. The bible says that it guards our hearts and our minds. It is a peace that surpasses all understanding.
True peace can only be found in God
The requirement is simple yet difficult. We need to die daily and pick up our cross and follow Him. So, what that means is good days, hard days, sad days we follow God. We apply His word to our lives and as we do, we excel in living a life that brings glory and honor unto the Lord in whom we serve.
The world does not have this understanding. Its only satisfaction comes from what it is able to create. Here today gone tomorrow. It is continuously trying to fill that empty void, yet no matter how hard they try they will always come up short. Jesus came to set the captive free. Only when our eyes are fixed upon Him do we have the ability to walk in the freedom that He paid for us to have.
True freedom is in relationship with the one who is totally free
It is no small thing to die to your self nature. Everything around us tells us a completely different story. The narrative that is being spun is based upon self-centeredness, we are entitled, and life owes us a great deal more than what we are currently receiving. When we are lured into this war, we will succumb to the pressures of it, if we do not know Gods word. Only Gods word can set you free.
God’s word has power to save, but you must take hold of it
Our lives can only be transformed when we gain the understanding to it. This requires effort where we invest our time to learn it, and then apply it. Only then do we have something to give others. We have so much in this world to be thankful for. Gratefulness is an attitude that comes from your heart, and spills forth that is a continuous power that you have the ability to draw upon.
Most of us have very little issue being grateful when times are good, yet the moment things turn, we can if not careful, be dragged downward into a spiral mess. It takes a conscious effort to remain with an outlook that keeps your eyes fixed on your eternal reward verses your current circumstances.
When our gaze is eternal, we have fixed our sights on the future
Read what 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says;
Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NLT)
These words that we read in these verses speak of the way we should conduct our lives. It causes us to step outside of the parameters of our circumstances and allows us to see things through a different set of eyes. It has nothing to do with how we feel. Instead, it has everything to do with what has been done on our behalf.
Our gratefulness is a response because of what God has done for us. His Son Jesus gave so much so that we could be whole. When we are able to see that our lives prior to Christ were corrupt, and to know that apart from what Jesus did we were left with a sentence of death, it changes how we respond to everything around us. Or, at least it should.
How can we not rejoice with what we have received
Read what John 16:33 says;
‘And everything I have taught you is so that the peace which is in me will be in you, and it will give you great confidence as you rest in me. For in this unbelieving world, you will experience trouble and sorrows, but you must be courageous, for I have conquered the world!” ‘ (John 16:33 TPT)
For us to go through life as Christians and expect not to have difficulties is to miss step what the scriptures instruct that we will encounter. As Jesus overcame, so can we. This means that we are being ruled by our spirits and not our carnal soulish ways. In this life we will encounter troubles but as we follow Jesus, He has overcome the world. This is a huge gauge. A plumbline that will never fail us.
Only when God’s word is our gauge can we overcome and not miss-step the truth
Read what Psalms 136:1 says;
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalms 136:1 ESV)
When we learn to apply the principals that God’s word teaches, we are able to rise above any circumstance and be grateful with a heart of gratitude because of the Lord’s faithfulness and steadfast love.
No matter the circumstances that we face God is able to deliver us from the depths of our despair. We can be healed when we call upon His name, and brought up from the grave. It is in this very place that we have been spared from the grip of the pit of death. Our wailing can be turned into dancing. Our moments where we feel like we are clothed in sackcloth, have been replaced with joy. Unspeakable joy, that our hearts cannot but express.
True Joy and strength are found only in the Lord, His word, and by the direction of His Spirit
This kind of response can turn any situation around. When we acknowledge God’s goodness as well as His faithfulness it is what is required. This is the very character of God, and it draws on from our past experiences that we can say with confidence … “With God All Things Are Possible.”
This is the very strength that God desires for us to walk in. Day-in-Day-out, victoriously operating out of a heart of what God has done, and will do. It is remembering the past victories, and leaning on the strength of the victories that we have been given. When we stand it is not in our strength but the Lord’s. We are left in a position where we are drawing on what we know to be true during those moments when we need it the most.
The question has to be asked. What have we filled our hearts with?
Our lives in the moment of need will only be able to respond with what we have filled our hearts with. When we travel through life, where life is all about us, and we continually live in a self-centered state. We will not be able to find anything of substance that we are able to lean upon during those moments. All because we are self absorbed in our own lives, and have never made room for anything that held an eternal value.
We will be defeated because there is no time to prepare
Yet on the other side. When we have trained our lives to operate in gratitude being grateful for what we have been given we are able to rise above any circumstance or trial that comes our way. We have been given victory and have learnt how to rise above all things through the power of what has been done for us.
We can lean upon our past victories. They are like a case filled with trophies of each and every circumstance that has ever tried to defeat us. We have been given an amazing testimony as to the Goodness of God in the land of the living. Taste and see that the Lord is good. From the abundance of our hearts our mouths speak.
Read what Psalms 34:8 says;
Taste of His goodness; see how wonderful the Eternal truly is. Anyone who puts trust in Him will be blessed and comforted. (Psalms 34:8 Voice)
