Psalm 100:4
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
Funny how far a little gratitude will go in a person's life.
I'm talking about the good kind of gratitude, not the bad.
Bad gratitude comes when you are able to score.
Bad gratitude comes when the policeman driving behind you pulls around and passes, and you have stuff in the car that you know will get you time in jail.
Bad gratitude.
Good gratitude....or what I refer to as "GOD" gratitude comes from a heart that realizes they have escaped from all the darkness that came with their addiction. Good gratitude is something to be cherished and held on to.
Gratitude is defined as: thankfulness, gratefulness, or appreciation is a feeling or attitude in acknowledgment of a benefit that one has received or will receive. In this case, I'm referring to gratitude toward God for giving me a new life...an actual relationship with Him.
I saw gratitude in action Saturday night at Vineyard Recovery. There was a person who had come to the meeting, but didn't really want to be there. God was all over them, bringing conviction. They cried during worship, and several times got up to go outside. They would compose themselves and come back into the room, only to be met by God again, once more coming under conviction and, once more the tears would start.
Finally during ministry time, they stood to acknowledge their need for this new life we'd been talking about. They stood to receive the salvation that only Jesus can offer. After the service, when talking with them, you could see that they still had a ton of questions about what had happened, but there was a peace and calmness on them that they had never experienced before. There was gratitude in their voice as they shared what had happened. They didn't know what the future held, but gratitude was going to be a part of their life from now on. Gratitude toward God and this wonderful present he'd given to them.
Is my life perfect? No.
Do I have troubles and problems that seem to not have an answer or solution to them? Yes.
But I don't allow such things to be a stumbling block to the gratitude I have for God and Him allowing me to be a part of His family and Kingdom.
To be thankful for the portion He has given me this day.
To be grateful for the very breath He has given me this day.
To find peace in the understanding that everything is temporary except for Him and His Kingdom.
Such are the things of heaven.
Such are the workings of my God.
God on you....
Go find yourself some gratitude this morning. It'll do you good.
mb
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