There is what is known as the force of gratitude. Sounds huge? Let’s break it down. Ideally, when someone gives you a gift or offers a compliment, you ought to say thank you because it shows courtesy, that you are well brought up and not a country bumpkin.
Also, it’s a sacrifice on the person’s side. They decided to give you out of love or they saw that you needed something.
Even with a compliment, the person took his or her time to really look at you and decide to appreciate you for how you dressed, your hair, how clean your nails are, or how nice you smell. They noticed you.
The least you can say is thank you with a very genuine and friendly smile.
If someone pays you a compliment about how good your grades are, say thank you. That’s the force of gratitude.
The Bible tells us to be thankful and that when we are grateful for what we have, we will receive more.
There are lots of people out there looking for who to notice them and would be grateful to just have one person say to them “you look good.”
I believe you have understood the force of gratitude. Therefore, remember to say thank you the next time you get a gift or compliment.
Prayer: Lord, I am grateful for all I have. Thank you for providing for my needs. Thank you for the compliments I have gotten and will get. Help me to always appreciate whatever I receive from others. Amen.
Action plan: Consciously be aware of people’s compliments. Ensure you reply with a smile and “thank you.”
Declaration: My children are grateful. They show appreciation in all they do.
Gratitude is a great habit to start practicing as early as you can. It is the act of looking for the good things that you have or that have happened in your life and be thankful for them. Look deep into your life and search for things you are enjoying right now. Thank God for them.
Thank God that you have parents who love you and provide for all you need. Appreciate God for giving you a roof over your head, food to eat, clothes wear, friends, and more. Gratitude is a great habit!
When you refuse to be grateful, you are taking for granted God’s blessing over you. You are saying to God that you don’t need Him or that what He is doing for you is not enough. Or that He is not even doing anything for you. But God is always doing something for you. Even if you are being bullied at school, still thank God that you can pray to Him and He will answer your prayers.
Always look around you and find something to be thankful for; gratitude is a great habit for you. Every morning you wake up, thank God for keeping you and your family members alive. Thank Him for the good health you are enjoying. Even if you are sick, thank Him for the medications you are using and the medical personnel that are treating you.
Don’t keep looking at the bad things happening. Search for the good ones. And be grateful for them. Learn to put on the cloak of gratitude. Yes gratitude is a great habit that you can wear, and it will sure do you good.
in every situation [no matter what the circumstances] be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thess. 18:5 AMP
Keep a journal of all the things you are grateful for and check them in a month. You will be surprised at how many items you are going to have in it.
May the Lord bless you with a heart of gratitude. Amen.
Prayer: I am grateful for all the Lord has given me, is giving me, and will give me in the future. Engrave this phrase in my heart: Gratitude is a great habit. Thank You, Lord.
Action plan: Keep a Gratitude Journal and start recording
God ensures that there are many things in your life that you should be grateful for. So you must learn how to be grateful. God gave you loving and kind parents, a roof over your head, shoes on your feet, clothes to cover your body, food to eat and even a pet dog to play with. These are just some of the things you should be grateful to God for.
O house of Israel, bless and praise the Lord [with gratitude]; O house of Aaron, bless the Lord; Psalms 135:19 AMP.
Gratitude should be about looking around you and in your life to see the things that you are enjoying. Or the ones you have enjoyed in the past. This is one way to learn how to be grateful – by carefully looking around.
Get a journal and daily write down the things you are grateful for. No day passes without a blessing from God. Find those blessings and write them down. Yes, write them down. That is how to be grateful.
Don’t just look at the big things only, note the little things too. God wants you to thank Him for both the big and small things because He made it possible. As big as our God is, He still does the little things. And you should learn how to be grateful no matter the ‘size’ of what God has done.
It’s better to write these things down as soon as they happen to you or at a convenient time for you. That way you don’t forget any.
May God give you a heart of gratitude always and help you find things to be thankful for daily. May He teach you how to be grateful in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Prayer: Thank you Father for your daily blessings. I will always be grateful for your blessings.
Action Point: Find an unused notebook or a diary, label it “My Gratitude Journal” and start to write all that you are grateful for each day. Don’t look at a good thing that happens to you as small, include it in your journal.
Gratitude means to declare that you acknowledge something good that you received. It could be a gift or help. How to practice gratitude as a child is what we wish to look at today.
I will exalt You, my God, O King, And [with gratitude and submissive wonder] I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Psalms 145:1 AMP
The psalmist in the above verse is showing this gratitude to God by writing Him a poem to say how grateful he was. That is how to practice gratitude.
Look at this second verse:
Remember [with gratitude] His marvelous deeds which He has done, His miracles and the judgments from His mouth, 1 Chronicles 16:12 AMP
Now the writer here is saying that we should remember with gratitude what God has done for us. You have to just learn how to practice gratitude as a child.
When people show ungratefulness it’s because they forget about what people or God has done for them. They believe that they have never received anything good in their lives. They refuse to say thank you. They refuse to praise God.
When you appreciate people for the good things they do for you, it’s a sign of gratitude. Rather than focus on what you didn’t get, be grateful for the ones you have. Yes, that is how to practice gratitude.
Saying thank you to God every time He blesses you gladdens His heart and He will bless you more.
For the next few days we will look at ways on how to practice gratitude to God and others.
You will also learn how to find things to be grateful for.
May your gratitude always go before God as a sweet smelling aroma in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.
Prayer: Father, I am grateful for the spirit of showing gratitude at all times. Teach me how to practice gratitude. Thank You dear Father in Jesus name. Amen.
Action point: Look for an empty notebook or jotter to start writing down things you are going to be grateful for as we continue the series.
Talking about gratitude or being grateful, I think every couple should be overly grateful to their spouse. Not only is it for the woman to be grateful but also for the man. We all owe ourselves a lifetime of gratitude.
If not for anything, that he/she married you. You know how difficult it could be, being married to you. The times you threw tantrums, the times you were ‘mad’ (literally), the time you did not understand yourself, the time you were under pressure, the time you were in debt, the time when you were sick and all these times your spouse stood with and by you.
I think we all should throw a gratitude party and make our spouses the special guest of honour.
But instead, what do we have? A grateful wife and a complaining husband. I think we all should repent. If only we could change roles we would see that it has not been easy.
If the woman changes roles and becomes the man for a while and the man becomes the woman, we would appreciate our spouses more. The truth is that there is a lot of work in being either of the spouses. Let no one blow his/her own trumpet.
But I want to shed more light on how the wife can use gratitude as a weapon to win the battles on the home front. Well not really battles but more of confrontations.
All women have the tendencies to nag and complain. There are so many things the wife wants to change in her husband. She’s an emotional relational being and so sees all the wrong things her husband does.
The route of complaining and nagging will never work. If anything, it will make your husband battle-ready. The role of the wife is that of influence. Before you can adequately influence, you must have accepted him.
Acceptance comes with praise, gratitude, and thanksgiving. Be grateful first for the hundred thousand before complaining that he didn’t give you a million. Be grateful for the trash he threw out even though he didn’t mow the grass.
I can give so many examples and show us many opportunities we have to be grateful for. As a wife, let gratitude be your daily weapon. Let no day pass without you being grateful. Look for something to be grateful for and do it enthusiastically.
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY I will love for my spouse
PRAYER FOR THE DAY Lord, grant me more wisdom and grace in my marriage
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY Bless your fresh–flowing fountain! Enjoy the wife you married as a young man! Lovely as an angel, beautiful as a rose–– don’t ever quit taking delight in her body. Never take her love for granted! Why would you trade enduring intimacies for cheap thrills with a whore (Proverbs 5:18-20 Message)
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY Decide to settle all quarrels amicably
