Faith and Gratitude

 What has God done for you lately?

We know God loves us. We've been told this from childhood. We accept as if we deserved it and may become unaware of His intervention and watch care. And since He is omniscient, we believe that He knows in our hearts that we love and appreciate His many gifts (beginning with our existence). So why is it important to acknowledge His role in our lives?

Let's look at this from another angle. You have a friend who is always in hot water, struggling to stay afloat, and who asks for your help. You quickly agree because this is your dear friend and you drop everything to assist in finding a way out of this current trouble. Your friend is grateful and you feel relief that all is well.

But before you get your own life back on schedule, your dear friend calls again; again you rearrange your schedule and rush to help. And soon this pattern is established; your friend seems to expect you to drop everything when you get the 911 call. And if you are not instantly available, you sense a little impatience or resentment implying that you are unfeeling and selfish, and a distance grows between you. Your friend begins to resent your failure to rescue and may even blame you for the latest pit he or she has fallen into. She seems unable (or unwilling) to learn how to avoid the bumps in her road.

You begin to feel hurt as you realize your friend hasn't taken your advice in the past and doubt she deeply appreciates your sacrifice of time and energy you have given her. You doubt she will ever stop depending on you to solve her problems. The gap in your relationship grows wider until she stops seeking your companionship; clearly the breach is beyond repair. Both of you have lost a friend. Do you really want to be the needy friend described above?

A little genuine gratitude affirms our relationship with others (and with God) and prevents our growing complacent, assuming that God is like Santa Claus, existing to fulfill all our wishes. For our relationship to flourish, love and gratitude must be expressed by word and deed—our willingness to heed His Word and testify to His faithfulness before others  who don’t know our Savior.

Also, gratitude shown before fulfillment of a prayer demonstrates our faith in His provision. In the story of the ten lepers, Jesus told them they were healed and to go show themselves to the priest to be declared clean. They began walking toward the temple before they saw evidence of healing. Only one of the ten turned back to thank Jesus before proceeding to the temple. Jesus's comment on this shows He values our gratitude.

Ten Lepers Cleansed     Luke 17:11-19  

      11While He was on the way to Jerusalem, He was passing between Samaria and Galilee. 12As He entered a village, ten leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; 13and they raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14When He saw them, He said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they were going, they were cleansed. 15Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, 16and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. 17Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? 18“Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” 19And He said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.”    

Why Do Christians Have Problems?

When things are going good, we forget we need God’s protection or that we need to return His love and attention. He may, gently or otherwise, send us a reminder that we cannot handle everything headed our way without His help. He yearns for our love and obedience. 

We’ve misbehaved, made a choice that carries a penalty which must be enforced, yet His promise is to go through our day with us, whether good or bad, easy or difficult, peacefully or in pain. He doesn’t punish us by sending trouble our way—the trouble we receive may be of our own making. “Do the crime. You do the time.”

Others, who don’t know God, are watching to see how we handle the same problems they endure.  God may use our attitude in time of trouble to get their attention. (Let’s try not to give them the wrong impression.)

In His greater plan, we may be bit players in His complex plan for someone else’s life. 

News Flash!!! None of us is the center of the universe, yet He is fully aware of every fleeting thought, our kindnesses, our failures, and all of us individually are the apple of His eye.

In order to grow confidence in His provision for us, He may allow Satan to test our resolve and faith, enabling us to exercise our faith muscles, strengthening our determination to fulfill His purpose for us without demanding He first explain before we consent.

We’ve forgotten we inherited Adam’s sinful nature. We do not live in Eden, folks. We live in a fallen world, where things go wrong, even if we’re not misbehaving. Our problems are not punishment; troubles rain on the just and unjust. (Once a man said this to me when he took away my job, along with several other unfortunate folks, and I thought at the time he didn't even look damp! But in God's time I was soon blessed with the best job I ever had and somehow, when I began work at the best workplace I had ever experienced, my bank balance was very like it was on that scary day two months earlier. God had been watching after all.) While Satan is free to wreak havoc in this world, evil exists and disease and there will be victims.

No matter what the reason for the tenor of our day, we must remember we are not alone. Our Holy Father is right beside us, His Spirit within us, to keep us from fear and failure.

It’s true this world is not fair but the next one is.

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.

Psalms 139:16

Following Jesus, whether through blessings or burdens, has the same result: being conformed to His image.       (Romans 8:28-29).