An Attitude of Gratitude

How many times do you say “Thank You”, during the course of a day? From an early age, we were taught to always say, “thank you” when someone shows us kindness, be it a gift, a ride, a loan, a meal, or through kind words. Even today as adults we say, “thank you” to our elders, family, friends, co-workers, and even to people we do not know. We say, “thank you” when we are told, “you did a good job”, “nice car”, “nice suit”, “nice tie”, “I like your hat”, “I enjoyed the cake you baked”, “girl you know you sang that song”, “you made my day”, and the list goes on and on.

By doing so, we are displaying an attitude of gratitude or giving pleasure or contentment which is what God expects from us, as indicated in EPHESIANS 5:20. "Giving thanks ALWAYS for ALL things unto God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

As always, there are some doubting Thomas’ that are reading this article and saying those examples are not what gratitude means. Well, let’s appease those doubting Thomas’ and define the word ‘gratitude’. According to Wikipedia, “Gratitude is nothing more than a feeling of thankfulness and an act of appreciation for a benefit received when accepted with an assumption of good faith that the motivation of the benefactor is to afford pleasure or contentment.”

Although gratitude can mean thankfulness or to respond to a favor we received, the meaning runs much deeper in true believers where our hearts are filled with gratitude for the many blessings that God gives, even when the blessings seem small to our many wants or because we are unable to see them. David is a prime example of how he exemplified an attitude of gratitude. David was most definitely a man after God's own heart. Even in trying times, David continued to praise God. His heart was full of praise to God because he was keenly aware of what God had done for him, and what God could do for him and his family. David became King, he did not come from royalty, he was the least in his family, and his family was last in his tribe. David even sinned; however, God’s Grace restored him (Psalm 34:1: 107:15).

As a Christian, our daily walk should be to make every effort to be more thankful to Him and do our utmost to live up to the call given to us in (Heb 13:15), "By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name."

Let’s not just give thanks on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas, but display a grateful heart each and every day to everyone – everyone includes your enemies, those that do not like you, and those that despise you and smear your name. But remember, (I THESS. 5:18) "In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." The NIV says, "Give thanks in all circumstances." So we're not to give thanks for everything, perhaps, but in everything we can have a grateful heart. Join me, as we let our light shine and show our gratitude by praising God forever and ever (Psalm 150). Do you have an “Attitude of Gratitude?”
ATTITUDE: A Positive Thinker - SEES the invisible, FEELS the intangible, and ACHIEVES the impossible.

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