Cultivating GratitudeShembull

Day 1: Gratitude Defined

Would you love to be full of joy and beauty, lifting the spirits of everyone you meet? Then live a life of gratitude.

Gratitude is a by-product, or result, of recognizing who Jesus is, and what He has done for us. Hebrews 12:28 teaches us to recognize the riches God has granted us in becoming citizens of heaven, and reminds us to worship Him with reverence and awe. Gratitude (or gratefulness or thankfulness) always recognizes, as James 1:17 declares, that God’s heart towards us never changes, and that He wants to bless us with all the good things of heaven. In 1 Corinthians 4:7, Paul humbles us with the reminder that we should not boast by claiming our own efforts have given us the things which with God has blessed us.

But, you say, “I built a house – God didn’t build it, I did.” “I ran a race. God didn’t do it, I did.” “I got a good grade on my exam; God didn’t do that. I’m the one who studied hard, and excelled.” So, I might ask you – Where did your mind come from? Who built your body? Who keeps the blood circulating to promote your wellbeing? Who created the air you breathe, and who gave it just the right composition, so that your body can absorb it and utilize it for life? Who created the earth you live on, which is just the right distance from the sun and moon and other planets, and has exactly the right selection of chemicals and minerals to support life? 

We could ask questions like this all day, and it would quickly become obvious that we only have these opportunities because God so graciously gave us everything, including the amazing gift of free will, to use what He has provided for us. We truly have nothing that we have not received! 

Paul sums this up in Romans 11:33-36; “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!...For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”

Let us meditate today on what we have to be thankful for, and where it all comes from.