November 27, Grateful People

Sing to the Lord with grateful praise.  Psalm 147:7

Throughout the entirety of the Scriptures, a life of gratitude seems to be consistently and genuinely on display.  God’s people are indeed a grateful people.  Therefore, take a moment to measure your own life by the spirit of gratitude we find described in the Bible through four qualities that distinguish highly grateful people. 

First, highly grateful people care about God’s will in their lives.  I Thessalonians 5:18 encourages, “be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Followers of Jesus are called to live in thankful response to God’s ongoing grace and mercy despite adversity, for regardless of the circumstance God is advancing His will.  Therefore, grateful people view every circumstance in life as an opportunity for God’s will to be fulfilled.   And, this results in ceaseless thankfulness

Second, highly grateful people are praying people.  Colossians 4:2 reminds us to “be steadfast in prayer and watchful with thanksgiving.”  The greatest way to keep a disciplined prayer life is through thankfulness, for this keeps us before God in faithful dependence upon His goodness.  Our prayers, regardless of the type of intercession, should always be like an offering of praise to God.  This can only come about through genuine gratefulness.  

Third, highly grateful people are content.  The Apostle Paul encouraged Christians to “sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:19-20). Scribed on parchment from within a prison cell, Paul offered these words as a declaration for the one who truly lives in the power of God’s Spirit.  For, nothing keeps the Christian faith strong and consistent like a genuine spirit of contentment that flows from a heart that is truly grateful.  

Fourth, highly grateful people always live from the perspective of grace.  We are called to honor God and to be thankful to Him.  For in this way we signify God’s activity of goodness and we glorify His nature. Thankfulness should always build from God’s grace given to us. This is why the Psalmist called the worshippers of God to enter “His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise” (Psalm 100:4).   For the truly thankful person always focuses upon the nature and activity of God demonstrated in His kindness and mercy toward us in Christ.  

Fifth, highly grateful people always live in a spirit of generosity.  In 2 Corinthians 8:2, Paul referenced the generosity of God’s people: their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. A member of a Christian church in India spoke of the ongoing generosity that many Christians have increasingly exhibited: “We Mizo people say, 'As long as we have something to eat every day, we have something to give to God every day’.”  Those who are truly grateful to God are those who are truly generous on His behalf.  

So today, allow God’s word to probe your own life to determine if indeed you are living in a spirit of gratitude. And, let’s resolve to move forward in our faith with a renewed spirit of gratefulness.  We can be assured others will take notice and glorify our God who is in Heaven.  Let’s be grateful people.

Blessings.