Contentment and Gratitude!

Scripture:

Psalm 69:30 I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.

Observation:

David said, "Praise… God… and… magnify Him with thanksgiving," because gratitude has:

(1) Driving power. Paul says, "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in victory" (2 Corinthians 2:14 NCV). Thanksgiving helps you make the hard decisions. It gives you courage to believe against all odds.

(2) Reviving power. Listen to what Paul says, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit: "Don'tever stop thinking about what is… worthy of praise…. And God, who gives peace, will be with you" (Philippians 4:8-9 CEV). Stopping regularly to recall God's goodness restores your perspective and strengthens you.

(3) Striving power. Gratitude gives you the "uumph" to move ahead. Paul could "press on" because his goals included:

knowing Christ: Philippians 3:14 "I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward."

preaching in Spain: Romans 15:24 "I'm planning my visit. I'm headed for Spain, and expect to stop off on the way to enjoy a good visit with you, and eventually have you send me off with God's blessing."

seeing a lost world saved: Romans 10:1 "Believe me, friends, all I want for Israel is what's best for Israel: salvation, nothing less. I want it with all my heart and pray to God for it all the time."

(4) Arriving power. When you reach your destination, you'll find you've developed selflessness and humility. That's because gratitude is nothing more than telling God and those around you, "Thanks. I couldn't have done it without you!"

Application:

When Dr. Robert Schuller, founder of California's Crystal Cathedral, was growing up, drought ravaged their family farm. They prayed for rain that never came. His dad, who normally harvested 100 wagon loads of corn, reaped only a half-wagon full.

Schuller says, "I'll never forget it. His calloused hands holding ours as he looked up and prayed, 'Thank you Lord, I've lost nothing. I've regained all the seed I planted in spring.' While other farmers were saying, 'We lost 90 or 100 loads,' my father told me, 'Never count the might-have-beens or you'll be defeated. Never look at what you've lost, only look at what you've got left.'"

Good advice! Too many times we get caught up in REGRETS and what MIGHT HAVE BEEN, and we don't give God the thanks that he is deserving of, and we find ourselves "wallowing" in self-pity and before long depression begins to settle in.

Today, why don't you purpose in your heart to be THANKFUL for everything that God has blessed you with.

Do you know what the word CONTENTMENT really means? It means, "wanting what God has blessed you with." Not "coveting" what you do not have. Paul said that he had LEARNED to be content. You learn CONTENTMENT by developing an ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE towards what God has placed in your life. You will NEVER develop gratitude as long as you camp out in the land of WHAT COULD HAVE OR MIGHT HAVE BEEN. Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Why not start it off with thanksgiving for you HAVE LEFT!

Prayer:

"Lord, You have blessed me in so many ways. I choose today to refuse the regrets that try to rob praise from my lips and thoughts. I can't do anything about regrets, but I can take inventory of my life today, and realize how blessed I really am. As I begin to count my blessings, and name them one by one, I am overwhelmed with gratitude! Thank you Jesus! Amen!"