Be Grateful - Part Two
“Being grateful” is an attitude that requires a listening heart!
You best appreciate life, what you have, the people you have in your life, and everything else, when you come from a place where you listen more than anything else.
To do the above, you’ll need to be in a place of love, goodness, and grace, with which God can help you.
The unfortunate reality of who you and I are is that we are all broken, hurting, and sinners. Our brokenness, sinfulness and hurts do not often set us up for showing gratitude in any way possible.
As a result, being grateful becomes so unrealistic, a lot of times, and even when we manage to do it, it’s only temporary, especially when things are going our way.
God’s grace, love, and goodness represent the kind of foundation we need, and which helps us show gratitude.
Take a look at Ephesians 5:18-20 (NASB),
… but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your hearts to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to our God and Father.
1) Be loving
Being loving will surely help you appreciate life and everything it brings about: people, things you have or don’t have, and more.
Love is the place where you need to be in order to learn how to be grateful. And, there are several reasons why. When you choose to love, not only you will see yourself in other people, but you learn how to live in humility.
Humility reminds you and everyone you come across in life that we are all broken and always in need of grace, a clean slate, a second chance to be loved, accepted, and valued. That’s why the Bible says this: “Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” (Romans 15:7).
It does not stop there. What you read in Romans 15 is an echo of what Jesus, himself, commands us of doing: “Love others as much as you love yourself” (Matthew 22:39).
And, that’s what He referred to as the second greatest command. In other words, if you love God, love your neighbor.
Loving God and neighbor sets you up for a life of humility, service, and gratitude!
2) Be gracious
Being gracious goes hand in hand with Being loving. It also speaks to what it means to live a life of goodness. As a result, being gracious sets us up for a life of gratitude.
Drawing on Romans 15:7, I’d say that welcoming others, since Christ has first welcomed us, is a daily calling for us all.
To welcome somebody has to do with an invitation as well as making space for them and where they would feel at home.
Everything about you is a letter of invitation God wants you to give to others so that they also have a chance to draw near to God.
Once you see yourself that way every morning before getting off your bed, your perception of yourself, others, the world around you, and everything that may happen to you throughout the day, will completely change.
It will keep you on your knees, humble, loving, gracious, and, of course, grateful that God is using you to invite somebody else to God!
We continue practicing gratitude every single day, not only because it is November. For that, we truly need God’s help to make us loving, gracious, and welcoming.
If you would like us to keep you in our daily prayers, use the form below to send us your concerns. Also, you can join us in prayer through my Youtube channel.
We show gratitude out of humility, love, grace, and goodness we only experience through faith in Christ who has called us to share God’s radical hospitality.
Remember to send us your prayer concerns
A couple of scriptures you could read for the rest of this week:
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 3:15-17
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
