Practicing Gratitude

Today’s message was written by Guest Pastor, Rev. Andy Odom. 

I give thanks to God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus. (1 Corinthians 1:4)

Today I want to talk about gratitude. We really don’t see a lot of gratitude going on these days. I mean, how often does someone surprise you by saying to you, “I just want you to know that I am grateful that I know you.” How often do you say that? I’m going to guess that we don’t say it often enough.

At the beginning of his letters to churches, Paul would always lead off with a word of gratitude. He would say things like, “I thank God for you, simply because of who you are.”

One thing that I try to do daily, although I will admit that I often forget to do it, is to look back on the day and highlight the things that I am grateful for. When I do that, the list is often longer than the negatives I’ve experienced in the day. If we really think about it, I think most of us have more to be grateful for than we do to be upset about.

What are you grateful for today? How long could you make that list? If you start practicing gratitude each day, you might just find yourself hoping more and complaining less, loving more, and despising less.

Prayer: Dear God, we are grateful for all you have given us and all you have promised us. The list is a long one, much longer than our list of complaints. Thank you for being exactly who you are, through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.