Three Lessons About Gratitude

Three Lessons About Gratitude

Our Senior Pastor from Bayside Chapel recently shared a message about gratitude and being thankful for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

So here is his outline and one that I believe is applicable for all of us as we approach this Thanksgiving season.

1. Make a habit of being thankful for the body of Christ. Paul illustrates this in all of his letters:

I do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers … Ephesians 1:16

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy … Philippians 1:3-4

We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you … Colossians 1:3

We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers … 1 Thessalonians 1:2

But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved    by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth,
2 Thessalonians 2:13

I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day … 2 Timothy 1:3

I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers.  Philemon 4

2. Be specific about it – why/because:

First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. Romans 1:8

 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, 1 Corinthians 1:4

Therefore, I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers. Ephesians 1:15-16

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, ⁵ for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, Philippians 1:3-5

We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, ⁴ since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; Colossians 1:3-4

 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, ³ remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3

I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, ⁵ hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, Philemon 4-

3. Direct your thanksgiving to God. I thank God always for person because _________.

First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. Romans 1:8

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, ⁵ for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, Philippians 1:3-5

We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, ⁴ since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; ⁵ because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, Colossians 1:3-5

Pastor Dave Ridder challenged us to spend time each day thanking the Lord for a person that comes to mind and for something specific that they do for which we are thankful. Journal it. And then take some to share what you wrote with that person. Send an email, a text, a handwritten note.

Great application. Let’s not talk about it – let’s do it.

Relentlessly pursuing Christ,

Bill Welte, President/CEO
America’s Keswick

Think About This: “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” William Arthur Ward