Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

 

Living with a heart of gratitude

Bible Reading:   1 Timothy 6: 3 – 8

 

Key Verse:  “Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.  But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content (1 Timothy 6 : 6 – 8).”

DEVOTION

Paul’s first letter to Timothy is a warning against false teachings in the church.  It contains instructions about church administration and worship.  It also advises how one can be a good servant of Jesus Christ. 
Today we are meditating on the subject “Living with a heart of gratitude” based on 1 Timothy 6: 3-8.  These six verses can be broadly categorized into two groups of people witnessing opposite views in life as follows:-
Contentment in life not found:
Verses 6: 3 -5 speaks about those people who do not find  contentment in life.  St. Paul   describes people here as false teachers, who are marked by pride and ignorance of truth, but claiming to be followers of Jesus Christ.  They do not agree to the teachings of Jesus Christ in the scriptures.  They are conceited, understand nothing, craving for controversy, quarrel over words, leading to envy, dissention, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among   people.   They also think that godliness is a means to financial gain. A greedy mind will never give us contentment. Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and plunge into ruin and destruction and will not find contentment in life.
Contentment in life found:
Verses 6: 6 -8 teaches us about those people who found contentment in life.   Paul tells here that godliness with contentment is of great worth.  It not only identifies contentment as a virtue, but also speaks of contentment as a command. You are to be content with whatever you have.  You are to be content with your wages. You are to be content because you understand that omnipotent God will never leave you nor forsake you. With the essentials of life, we should be content.  Most Christians don’t experience it, obviously, to the degree that God desires us to. We tend to be a very discontent people. We are called to be contented, and satisfied. We are called to say I have enough. Paul was a satisfied and a contented man.  Verse 8 says that if we have food and clothing, with these we shall be content. Discontentment and contentment are a heart issue.    Godly contentment we experience in life is the key to the living with a heart of gratitude.  As Christians, we have a lot of things to be grateful for.
How can we live with a heart of gratitude?
Express gratitude to God: 
Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.  Give thanks to Him and praise His name. Gratitude is an attitude of thankfulness and appreciation for the blessings and acts of kindness we receive from God.   We must be thankful to God, because God, through His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, redeemed us from sin and He became our Salvation. We are grateful for the greatest gift of Jesus Christ, who is with us ‘Immanuel’.  Word of God instructs us to be grateful in all circumstances in our lives.  When we express gratitude, we acknowledge that God is the source of all blessings in our lives.  This deepens our relationship with Him. A grateful heart is a joyful heart.  Gratitude can bring peace and contentment in the midst of trials, sorrows, and tribulations in our lives.  
Very often we fail to express gratitude to God for the blessings we received from Him; but rather complain about the blessings not received. There are many instances in the Bible, where God wants us to express our gratitude to him.  In Luke 17:11-19, we read about 10 lepers who were healed by Jesus on their way back; but only one came back, praising God in a loud voice, and threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him.  He receives physical healing and spiritual healing. Jesus asks here where are the other nine who also received the physical healing.  Praising God is an expression of gratitude.  Psalm 63:3 says “Because Your favor is better than life, my lips will praise You.”
Express Gratitude to others: 
 Expressing gratitude to others not only blesses us, but also helps us to recognize the good in our lives.  We do not have an existence of our own.  Our lives depend on the lives of others in many ways.  A grateful heart promotes harmony in the community when he realizes that he is enriched because of others, which is a mark of humility. The person who thinks the world owes him a living is never thankful to anybody. Real independence is interdependence. 
A grateful heart is a compassionate and sharing heart:
A life with a heart of gratitude will compel us to open our eyes to the world around us to be compassionate, and share whatever we have with those who are needy and marginalized.  Follow the example of Jesus Christ, who showed compassion to the suffering people during his three and half years of public ministry.  Just like Jesus, our gratitude must be expressed in our actions/deeds. This is a way to be grateful to Almighty God,  and to the people around us.  Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me”(St. Mathew 25:40). We are called to follow the example of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Faith without works is dead.
Take an inventory of life.  
Count your blessings and you will see what the Lord has done in your life.  The psalmist David says “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name.  Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalms 103: 1-2). Look behind, look within, and look forward with a grateful heart and positive thoughts.
 Let us examine ourselves to see whether we are living with a heart of gratitude to God and man. Are we grateful for the free gift of Salvation?  Are we grateful like the one Samaritan leper who returned to Jesus and expressed gratitude? Are we sharing whatever we have with those who are needy and marginalized?  Like the Psalmist David, let us not forget all the blessings we receive from the Lord and live with a heart of gratitude to God and others, so that the name of our Lord is glorified.

   PRAYER

Heavenly Father, we know that we have neglected to thank you for so many blessings. You have blessed us and waited for us to run back to you with thanks, but we have gone our own way.  We have taken you for granted. Please forgive us. Help us to be content with whatever we have.  Put gratitude and thankfulness into our heart and soul. Let us speak it, sing it, and live it, so that we might be a visible example of the one whom you have saved and healed. In Jesus' mighty name, we pray. Amen.

Thought of the day

Are we glorifying God with our lives?

Philip Jacob
The Mar Thoma Church Staten Island, New York

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