Choosing Gratitude Week 4

Choosing Gratitude: Week 4

6/27/2023

Do you know anyone who is bound by #anxiety and needs to be released? Anxiety is a prison, and #gratitude is what brings #freedom. By Choosing to make gratitude our default, there is nothing--no matter how awful--that will overthrow us and leave us in a state of anxiety. But because we are human, we may very well feel the anxiety welling up within us. We must refuse to #dwell in a state of anxiety. The temptation to be #anxious is not a sin. The choice to live in a state of anxiety is. #reading

Hello, friend! Are you ready to begin your journey toward greater joy? Join us for our Summer 2023 Book Club-Style Bible Study. We're reading "Choosing Gratitude: Your Journey to Joy" by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth. This book challenges and equips us to live a life of gratitude.

What is gratitude? Gratitude is a choice. It is a decision to focus on the good things in our lives, even when things are difficult. When we choose gratitude, we are choosing to be happy and content. Why is gratitude important?

Gratitude has many benefits, including:

Increased happiness and well-being
Reduced stress and anxiety
Improved physical health
Stronger relationships
Increased creativity and productivity

GRAB YOUR BOOK HERE AND LET'S GET STARTED!

"When we take simple blessings for granted as if they were owed to us, or conversely, when we start to think that our house, our car, our wardrobe, or our general station in life is beneath what we deserve, ingratitude finds all the oxygen it needs to thrive.

One of the unseemly side-effects of all the effort and energy our society has invested in building our individual and collective self-esteem is that our culture is now rife with this super-high level of deservedness." —Nancy DeMoss, Choosing Gratitude

So how do we cultivate a life of gratitude? There are many ways to cultivate gratitude, here are a few:

Keep a gratitude journal.
Write thank-you notes to people who have blessed you.
Spend time each day reflecting on the good things in your life.
Express your gratitude to God in prayer.

Join us for this study! Each weekly post will be posted on Tuesday mornings at 9:00 here on the blog, June 6 - August 1. Feel free to discuss the book and share your thoughts and experiences in the comments. Let's make cultivating gratitude a priority in our lives this summer!

Why Choose Gratitude?

“Gratitude unleashes the freedom to live content in the moment, rather than being anxious about the future or regretting the past.” —Ellen Vaughn

The freedom to live content.

Do you know anyone who is bound by anxiety and needs to be released? Anxiety is a prison, and gratitude is what brings freedom.

By Choosing to make gratitude our default, there is nothing—no matter how awful—that will overthrow us and leave us in a state of anxiety. But because we are human, we may very well feel the anxiety welling up within us. We must refuse to dwell in a state of anxiety. The temptation to be anxious is not a sin. The choice to live in a state of anxiety is a sin.

You may know two people who are going through the same trial. One is beside themselves with fear, and the other is at peace. What makes the difference? I believe it is a strong faith that God is at work, and that they are a part of that greater plan; therefore, they are thankful, and at peace.

“It’s a Wonderful Life!”

My sister gave that puzzle to me for my birthday last year. George Baily is standing with his family beside the Christmas tree. Most of us can picture the scene. What makes the difference in George’s attitude at the end of the movie when he ran down the street yelling, “Merry Christmas”? Had his circumstances changed? No. He was still in the same predicament. Faced with a jail sentence. But what had changed was that he was overwhelmed with gratitude and gratitude—that’s what changes things. That’s what changes us.

Let’s look at 8 good reasons to be grateful. These will be a big help to us the next time we are tempted to complain.

Be grateful because gratitude is a matter of obedience.
Plain and simple, God told us to give thanks. To rejoice. And that is enough reason to make it a habit in our lives.

“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High” (Psalm 50:14).

“Give thanks in all circumstances; this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (I Thess. 5:18).

Whatever spot we find ourselves in—enjoying beautiful weather on a much-needed vacation, or facing disappointing sickness during a time when the family was to get together—give thanks in all circumstances.

We have been talking about choosing gratitude, but as Christians is it really a choice? Isn’t it a command? Just like the children of Israel, we will suffer consequences for our disobedience if we are not grateful. It is for our good and it is for His glory.
Be grateful because gratitude draws us close to God.
All true Christians, because they have the Holy Spirit, feel that tug to be closer to God. The command to be grateful is an invitation from God to me and you to come close to Him at any point of the day.

“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise. Be thankful unto Him and bless His name. For the Lord is good..." (Psalm 100:4-5).

We are entering into His very presence when we are thankful to Him. Oh, how I long to be close to God at all moments of the day. And the way to do that is with thanksgiving and praise. Psalm 22:3 says God inhabits the praises of His people. I like the way Nancy, the author of Choosing Gratitude, put it, “God lives in the place of praise. If we want to be where He is, we need to go to His address.”
Be grateful because gratitude is a sure path to peace.
What is peace to you? The absence of noise? When the family has all been at your house and they have left, and now you sit down and enjoy some peace and quiet, is that peace?

Can you be at peace in the midst of chaos? Picture yourself in the middle of a room with crying babies, someone spilling their drink, and the dog barking. What is the one thing that brings peace? It is not gritting your teeth and bearing it and shutting out all the confusion.

Peace comes when you dwell on what it is that God has given you through these dear family members. You are together. Your children want to be with you. God has provided this time to speak truth into their lives, and that truth may be as simple as your actions of love, compassion, and gentleness in the midst of chaos. And you are grateful for that opportunity. And strangely, you are at peace.

What is stealing your peace right now? God says that in “everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

“God’s peace is one of the many blessings that lives on the other side of gratitude.” —Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth
Be grateful because gratitude is a gauge of the heart.
Our actions reflect our hearts. What we love. What we believe.

The book of James describes how our actions reflect our faith. They speak louder than our words.

Maybe you went to church this past Sunday instead of sleeping in. What does that say about you? It tells us what you value and what you love.

There are times when praise and Thanksgiving pour out of your mouth unintentionally. That is an indicator that you are trusting God. You believe He is faithful and good.

Gratitude is a gauge of the heart. It displays how much we love our Lord and shows our understanding of how undeserving we are to receive anything from Him.

Psalm 140:13 says, “Surely the righteous will give thanks to your name.” Out of a right heart will naturally flow gratitude.
Be grateful because gratitude is the will of God.
Let’s think about the truth of God’s will as it relates to gratitude. This is a very common prayer request. “Please, Lord, show me Your will. I need your guidance.” Whether it’s someone who is just starting out in life and making huge impactful decisions—from what to study in college to whom they will marry—or those who are approaching retirement who must decide where to live, how to parent adult children, and even what route to take for their medical needs. The decisions are endless no matter what our age.

“God’s will is not so much a place, a job, or a specific mate, as it is a heart and lifestyle.” —Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

When we are obeying the will of God in the specific areas in His Word, the clear statements that tell us THIS IS MY WILL, then we are on the right path of wisdom. We'll be less likely to make a wrong turn.

“The will of God is a whole lot bigger and broader than fine-print details and exact measurements. Instead, it’s characterized by a handful of simple constants that overshadow our specific questions and our appeals for direction.” —Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

One of those “simple constants” is gratitude. Be consistently grateful. Be doing what you already know to be His will, and you will find yourself doing the will of God.

Gratitude is the will of God.

“Give thanks in all things; for this is the will of God in Christ concerning you” (I Thessalonians 5:18).
Be grateful—gratitude is evidence of being filled with the Spirit.
What does it mean to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and how can we know that we are filled?

All Christians receive the Holy Spirit at salvation. Romans 8:9 says, “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact, the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him.”

All Christians HAVE the Spirit, but possessing the Spirit and being filled with the Spirit are two separate things.

Ephesians 5:17-18 tells us, “Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is….be filled with the Spirit.”

This is God’s will for us AND it is a command—just like gratitude. The passage goes on to tell us what will happen when we are filled with the Spirit:

“Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:19-20).

When we’re filled with the Spirit, we are building up and encouraging one another with our songs and singing, and we are also giving thanks and worshiping God from our hearts. It is intuitive. We will not be able to stop it, because gratitude is an outpouring of the Spirit of God.
Be grateful because gratitude reflects the heart of Jesus.
I love this point. I want to be like Jesus.

We really don’t realize how gratitude permeated Jesus’ whole life on this earth until we begin taking note of each time He did give thanks.

Jesus gave thanks to God for revealing the truth to His disciples – Luke 10:21

At the tomb of Lazarus before Jesus even raised him, He gave thanks that God heard Him – John 11:41

At mealtime Jesus gave thanks – Matthew 15:36
"When facing suffering Jesus gave thanks. In Matthew 26:27, Jesus was in effect saying, “Yes, Father, I willingly surrender Myself to Your calling for My life, whatever the cost.” He gave Himself to God and to the world, not under coercion but with abandon and with gratitude, grateful for the privilege of obeying His Father and of fulfilling the mission He had been sent to earth to complete.” —Nancy Wolgemuth
Be grateful because gratitude gets us ready for Heaven.
In Heaven the 4 living creatures day and night never cease to say, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty Who was and is and is to come” (Revelation 4:8)!

The twenty-four elders fall on their faces before Him, saying, “We give thanks to You, Lord God Almighty, Who is and Who was, for You have taken Your great power and begun to reign” (Revelation 11:17).

There will be gratitude overflowing in Heaven. It is what we will be doing for all eternity.

Choose gratitude now.

Why are you choosing gratitude today, friend?

Christian Gratitude Journal for Women

This Christian Gratitude Journal for Women is produced by Pretty Simple Press. It's a 52-week inspirational guide to a life with more prayer and less stress.

This Gratitude Journal is designed to help us cultivate an attitude of gratitude. It's a self-exploration journal that encourages us to focus on being thankful for what we have. We'll focus on the big things in life, as well as the simple joys. Each well-designed and deeply-inspirational weekly spread contains space for us to journal. We'll journal three things we are thankful for. We will also discover thoughtful weekly Scripture.

If we begin each day by writing down three things we are thankful for we're on our way to a lifetime of gratitude. Whether it's a family member, a dear friend, or the ability to read a good book. We will begin each day on the right path.

Grab this journal and begin a daily habit of focusing on the blessings!

GRAB YOUR CHRISTIAN GRATITUDE JOURNAL FOR WOMEN HERE

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