An Attitude of Gratitude Ephesians 5:15-20 Intro: When upon life s billows you are tempest-tossed, When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, Count your many blessings, name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord has done. Refrain: Count your blessings, see what God has done! Count your many blessings, see what God has done. If you ve been alive for any length of time, you understand the battle with bitterness, self-pity, negativism and depression. Amazingly, thanksgiving is an antidote to our struggle with those things that rob us of the joy that God intends. Be very careful, then, how you live not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. How do you live? a) Complaining nothing is ever good enough b) Ungrateful - not complaining but not thankful c) Grateful for good happiness dependent on happenings d) Grateful to God trust in the Lord, not life Let s talk about how gratitude can rescue us from a) personal unhealthiness and b) infecting others with negativism. 2 Corinthians 3:2 - you are a letter from Christ. Do people read trust and find joy in the words you exhibit and speak? Let s talk about why and how we should be a thankful people. 1
First: Gratitude is Smart 15 Be very careful, then, how you live not as unwise but as wise, Verse 15 indicates that gratitude indicates careful living and a wise perspective. Why? Because everything is a gift from God. 1 Corinthians 4:7 - who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? James 1:16-17 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change Ingratitude reveals a lack of knowledge about God and faith in God. Does God exist? Is God good? If so, gratitude is an appropriate attitude toward life. Smart people are thankful people. Ungratefulness is ignorance. Are you ever burdened with a load of care? Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear? Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly, And you will keep singing as the days go by. Second: Gratitude is Spiritual 18-20 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. It s important to note that before we are told to give thanks in verse twenty, verse eighteen says, "...Be filled with the Spirit." Living with gratitude is not a human way to live, not a natural way to live it's supernatural. And this kind of thankfulness only comes out of a vital relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is the substance of it, the source of it, and the strength of thankfulness. We are to be filled with the Spirit, and we are to be giving thanks as a result of that ongoing filling. And that's the only way we can do it. Gratitude is not natural to us. Our original parents were not thankful for God s grace to them but suspicious of God s goodness. They wondered if God had been as good to them as he could 2
have or should have been and determined to investigate if they could discover a greater goodness on their own. It is natural to get drunk on wine, to attempt an escape reality in search of a better goodness than God provides. On the other hand, singing and giving thanks is a reflection of the Spirit s filling When you look at others with their lands and gold, Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold; Count your many blessings money cannot buy Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high. Third: Gratitude Should be Perpetual 20 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Since everything comes from the God who is a) good and b) who never changes, God intends even bad things to be for our good. We may not thank God for everything, but we can thank God in everything. Notice: We give thanks to God in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ Romans 8:31-32 - What then shall we say to these things? [God s goodness in securing our salvation] If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Every good thing is wrapped up in Jesus. If God has given us Jesus, he does not mean us harm. Knowing this enables us to give thanks to God in bad things. Romans 8:28-30 - 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What assurance do we have that God means even bad things for our good? Each step of God s work in saving us assures us now of heaven.he also glorified. What does this mean? It means we can be grateful for a) Spiritual things salvation, conviction, fellowship, etc. b) Simple things You can be amazed at how gratitude about small things can change your perspective. 3
APP: I want to encourage you to start a thankful list. Or, have a chalkboard in your home that you can write down one thing each day about which you are grateful. Doing so will 1- Keep you from getting upset about larger things If you practice gratefulness now, it will build a border of thankfulness around your heart that will not be easily penetrated by day-to-day frustrations 2- Prepare you for the hardest things You need to daily build faith, hope, and love for God into your heart so that when your life is bushwhacked by sin you won t think ill of God. ILL Most people who have endured hard things do not get easily upset by daily things? Why is that? c) Sorrowful things You may say, "Well, I don't feel like thanking Him." Don't thank Him by feeling; thank Him by faith. You're not told to feel thankful but to be thankful. Nothing shows your faith in the absolute sovereignty of God more than just simply thanking God in every situation. Again, we are commanded to be thankful in all things, not for all things. For instance, *We are not happy to know that Jesus suffered for our sins but we are thankful to know that he did *We are not happy when someone endures surgery but we are happy to discover the surgery helped them *We are not happy to endure class material but are happy to know that each class takes us closer to our goal of graduating *We are not happy when loved ones die but are thankful for heaven and its joy Much of thankfulness is a perspective and we have to remind ourselves that our perspective is heavenly. This world is fallen and thankfully, it is not the end of our lives. Nor should it determine how we live our lives. So, amid the conflict whether great or small, Do not be discouraged, God is over all; Count your many blessings, angels will attend, Help and comfort give you to your journey s end. Count your blessings, see what God has done! And it will surprise you what the Lord has done. 4
Conclusion: The Bible never commands us to feel grateful. It does command us to be thankful. Feelings often precede obedience but not always. Feelings often follow obedience but not always. "Well," you say, "if I had something to be thankful for, I'd be happy." You have missed the point! You do have something to be thankful for. You have life. You have Christ. You may say, "But my circumstance are not good." The apostle Paul was in prison when he wrote this, yet he was rejoicing in the Lord. Gratefulness turned his prison to a palace, but ungratefulness can turn your palace to a prison. I'm telling you, the attitude of gratitude will change your life. As you exercise thankfulness, you will become a thankful person. Your life will be joyful and you will be a joyful person to be around. That kind of life is happier for you and attractive to others. Community Groups: 1 What does Paul mean when he writes, you are a letter from Christ? 2 Where do most people that you know, get their information about Christianity? 3 How important then is our attitude in life? 4 - Describe what it like to be around unthankful people? 5 How would you describe your life: complaining, ungrateful, grateful for good or grateful to God? 6 What has created this disposition in you? 7 Why is gratitude a smart attitude? 8 Why do you think unthankfulness is our natural disposition? 9 Why does Paul tell us to be filled with the Spirit before he tells us to live thankfully? 10 What kind of drugs to the people in your life prefer to God? 11 How does that choice of a false god affect them and the people around them? 5
12 What is the difference between thanking God for all things and thanking God in all things? 13 How can we and why do we thank God in all things even if they are bad? 14 How can daily thankfulness prepare you for hard things? 15 How are you going to cultivate a thankful life? 6