How You Can Live a Life of Thanksgiving all Year Long

How You Can Live a Life of Thanksgiving all Year Long
Dr. Jack Graham

There's a poignant story in Scripture about a group of lepers who were
healed by Jesus. And as Luke 17 tells us, only one of the men who was
healed of their horrible, incurable disease came back to thank Jesus
for doing what He did!

Now, I don't think those other lepers weren't thankful. In fact, I'm
sure they were overjoyed. But they were in such a hurry they didn't
pause long enough to say two simple words: Thank you.

During this time of year when we pause to give thanks to God for all
His blessings, we as Christians have more reason than anyone else on
earth to be thankful.

But how many of us are really truly thankful people? How often do we
stop long enough all year long to remember and thank Jesus for all
He's done for us?

There are three main reasons why followers of Christ aren't thankful
today... three "thanks-busters" that each of us — if we're not careful
— can fall victim to. Not only will these three thanks-busters keep us
from being thankful, they'll stop us from truly enjoying life and
becoming all that Christ wants us to become as His children!

Thanks-buster #1: Conceit
Conceit - or the attitude of pride - is one of the biggest thieves of
thankfulness. Why? Because a conceited spirit says, "I deserve what
I've got," and, "I deserve all the credit for what I did and for what
I accomplished."

It's like the woodpecker who was hammering away at a telephone pole.
At about the time he was making some headway, a huge bolt of lightning
struck the pole and split it right down the middle. When the
woodpecker came to his senses, he flew out and came back with ten of
his woodpecker friends and said, "See! See what I did! See what I
did!"

The Scripture says that pride comes before a fall... and I might add,
a great deal of disappointment, too.

Thanks-buster #2: A Critical Spirit
Another thief of thankfulness is a critical spirit.

You know, those who have a critical spirit are petty. They're never
satisfied. And they're all wrapped up in themselves. They're
constantly finding fault... constantly blaming... constantly being
negative. I doubt you know anyone like this!

People like this grumble because they don't have what they want,
instead of being thankful for not getting what they deserve. This kind
of attitude destroys thanksgiving…and it could potentially wreck your
life.

Thanks-buster #3: Carelessness
Having an attitude of carelessness means getting accustomed to your
blessings... getting used to what God has given you. Much like the
children of Israel when they were out in the wilderness.

God satisfied the needs of the nation of Israel as they wandered
through the wilderness by feeding them with manna, an incredibly light
bread that appeared on the ground every day. It was a miracle every
morning, and, of course, they celebrated it at first. But as they
wandered in the wilderness due to their own disobedience, they
eventually grew to hate that light bread! They got used to the
blessing. They became accustomed to what God had given them. And that
will destroy thanksgiving in our hearts every time!

So what about you? Are you a thanks-buster?

Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 to "give thanks in all
circumstances." Why does Paul tell us this? Because he knows that when
we limit our gratitude... when we don't say thanks... we build a very
small fence around our lives.

Instead of living and enjoying the full expanse of what God has given
us, we build a little hut around ourselves — and our world becomes
very small, narrow, and selfish.

So today, I want to encourage you to ask God to help you root out any
thanks-busters in your life. Because when you live a life of thanks,
you'll realize that beyond your circumstances... beyond what you're
going through... there is a sovereign God who loves you and has a
wonderful plan for your life!


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PowerPoint(r) Ministries started as a vision of Dr. Jack Graham and
his wife Deb. They believed that the power of God was evident in their
growing church and that His Gospel message should be spread beyond the
walls of that church to the world at large. They put their faith into
action and purchased airtime on the Trinity Broadcasting Network.
PowerPoint(r) Ministries was then officially launched in April 1994.
PowerPoint(r) Ministries now reaches 31 cities and 18 states in the
United States through their radio and television stations. In
addition, they broadcast in over 70 countries including the U.S.,
Great Britain, South Africa, Iraq, Israel, and more.