Gratefulness: A Spiritual Reinforcement Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. Psalm 100: 4
Gratefulness: A Spiritual Reinforcement You know his proven character Philippians 2:22 Gratefulness is the character trait for the month of November. Listed below are suggestions that could be used as a springboard to partner with NRCA teachers in instructing and explaining this spiritual principle to your children. Definition having the desire or reason to thank somebody, thankfulness, gratitude, appreciation Antonym disregard, neglect, aloofness, coolness, indifference Key Verse - Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. Psalm 100: 4 Related Hymns and Choruses Sing Songs with Your Children! Focus on Gratefulness Songs. * Count Your Blessings Google Count Your Blessings by St John's Children's Choir * Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow Google Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow * Google Thanksgiving Medley * Hymns Listed by Subject http://www.hymntime.com/tch/top/topics.htm - Click on Thanksgiving Bible Verses Related to Gratefulness (Thank, Thanks, Thankful, Thanksgiving) Spend several evenings looking at just one of these verses at a time. Don't forget to ask your children the questions: Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How? Discuss with your family what each verse teaches about the character quality of Gratefulness and give vital application of how this quality can be applied to your family. Choose several verses to memorize together as a family. All of the verses are from the New King James Version of the Bible. 1. Thank God without ceasing (I Thessalonians 2:13) 2. Thank Christ Jesus our (1 Timothy 1:12) 3. Be thankful to Him (Psalm 100:4) 4. Give thanks to the Lord for (I Chronicles 16:34) 5. Is good to give thanks to the Lord (Psalm 92:1) 6, She gave thanks to the Lord (Luke 2:38) 7. At His feet, giving Him thanks (Luke 17:16) 8. When He had given thanks (1 Corinthians 11:24) 9. In everything give thanks (I Thessalonians 5:18) 10. His presence with thanksgiving (Psalm 95:2) 11. Into His gates with thanksgiving (Psalm 100:4) Bible Stories as a part of your family devotions. All of these stories emphasize Gratefulness. * The Grateful Leper - Luke 17:12-20 * The Story of Ruth * King Ahasuerus in Esther chapter 6 * The Apostle Paul in Acts chapter 9 and Philippians 4:10 Character Definitions * Communicating to others the precise ways in which they have benefited my life, and looking for ways to honor them. * Learning to recognize the benefits which God and others have provided. * Looking for appropriate ways to express genuine gratefulness. * Accepting difficulties as part of God s loving provision.
How to Demonstrate Gratefulness to God * List the ways God benefits you * Recall God's help during crisis * Learn and praise the names of God * Choose to thank God when not thankful to Parents * Honor your parents' sacrifices * Cherish what your parents taught * Sit with your parents in public * Choose to dress for your parents * Redirect praise to your parents * Celebrate parents' special days * Give parents a grateful smile * Thank parents for correction * Find ways to please parents to your Teachers * Praise them for their dedication * Thank their family members * Praise their high standards * Trust God to work through them * Thank them for their protection * Pray for them and their families The I Wills of Gratefulness * I will show my parents and teachers that I appreciate them * I will write thank you notes * I will take care of my pets and other things * I will be content with what I have * I will count my benefits rather than my burdens How to Discover the Key to Gratefulness The more we realize how indebted we are to God and deserving of nothing but eternal punishment, the more grateful we will be for the many ways He and others benefit us. One day Simon, a Pharisee, invited Jesus to his home for a meal. During the meal a repentant woman came in, wept over Jesus' feet and then wiped His feet with her hair. Simon murmured against Jesus for letting an immoral woman touch Him, but Jesus said, "There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?" (Luke 7:41-42) Simon answered that the one who was forgiven the most would be the most grateful. Jesus commended him for a right answer and then explained that the woman who was weeping had been forgiven many sins, and, therefore, she was very grateful to God. The woman who washed Jesus' feet was repentant for her many sins. Each of us is also guilty of many sins when we compare our lives to the holy standards of God's Law. (See Exodus 20.) We can follow her good example by repenting of our pride and willfulness and receiving the forgiveness that Christ has already provided for us by His death on the cross. (See John 3:1-17.)
"O, God, I recognize that I am a great sinner and deserving of eternal judgment. I thank You for sending Jesus Christ to pay the penalty for all my sin, and I do now receive Him as my Lord and Saviour. Thank you for hearing this prayer and for giving me eternal life." Discuss the Following Questions with Your Children * Do you make it a habit to thank God and others for the many little things in life that others tend to take for granted? * How many people can you think of who have benefited your life in the past? * How many of these have you personally thanked? * Pride is believing that I have achieved what in reality God and others have done for me and through me. How to Raise Grateful Children In this world of over-indulgence and instant gratification how do we teach our children to be grateful? Believe it or not, gratefulness doesn't come naturally to children. It's our job as adults to instill a sense of gratitude in our children. Following these four steps will help to get the job done! Step 1 Set The Example. Realize that we must model the behavior we expect from our children. Give children a sincere expression of gratitude when they do something kind for you or someone else. Then let them see you showing gratitude as you go about your daily routine and with the people you encounter. Since children model our behavior, remember to mind your attitude. In large part, this will determine whether your children adopt a positive or negative outlook. An upbeat attitude can help children learn to be thankful for the little joys each day, while a negative one does just the opposite. Step 2 Expect Gratitude. While most children are good at being thankful for large things, don't let them off the hook with the small things. Remind them to say, "thank you" for the milk you pour or for helping them in small ways. Children who are reminded about "thank you" manners at home will eventually not need reminders in social situations and in school. Step 3 Give to Others. Share the experience of helping others with your children. Empathy is a learned behavior, so as you're donating food to the hungry or clothes and toys to the needy, talk with your children about how they would feel if they didn't have those things. Take the next step and let your children help serve others when possible. Step 4 Establish Gratefulness Traditions. Don't just be thankful at Thanksgiving. Regularly make family lists of things for which you are grateful. Use the dinner table to teach. Whether it's thanking God for blessings or thanking the parent who fixed the dinner or thanking each other for their love, it's a great time to focus on how fortunate you are. Using this family time to show gratefulness will surely spill over into your child's everyday life. Teach Kids to Celebrate Thanksgiving Every Day of the Year Thanksgiving is a time when many people celebrate and consciously give thanks for the blessings in their lives. But giving thanks and fostering feelings of gratitude and appreciation is something that can be encouraged throughout the year. Teaching kids fun thanksgiving games and activities and modeling an attitude of gratitude can greatly improve family relations, and lead to more feelings of joy and love in the home. Make What I Am Thankful for Leaves.
Google Amazon.com Children s Books on Gratitude to choose from over 100 books about Gratitude. These would make wonderful bedtime stories for you and your children to share! Some of these can be found in your local library. Biscuit Is Thankful by Alyssa Satin Capucilli and Pat Schories Henry's Life As A Tulip Bulb or Developing an Attitude of Gratitude by Linda M. Brandt Thanksgiving Is for Giving Thanks by Margaret Sutherland and Sonja Lamut A Tree in Tappen Wood: A Musical Tale of Growing and Gratitude Mary's First Thanksgiving: An Inspirational Story of Gratefulness by Kathy-jo Wargin and Robert Papp