Your Daily Devotional for October 7, 2007

 

October 7,  2007

 

 

A Thankful Heart

by Dr. Paul Chappell

 

 

"Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 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; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations."

 

Psalm 100:1-5

 

 

When devastating floods came to Mozambique a few years ago, families were separated as they fled from the rising waters. The death toll rose as the floods receded and bodies that had been submerged were discovered. Some counts were in the thousands. One Mozambique minister named Samuel Naftal gave thanks to God and mosquitoes for saving his life. As Samuel, along with sixteen other people, clung tightly to the limbs of trees for two days, he began to preach. All of them hoped his preaching would keep them alert to their surroundings. They listened and watched as furniture, television, and other material goods floated by. Then the mosquitoes began swarming around them, repeatedly biting them. Naftal testified, "I thank God for those mosquitoes because they kept me from falling asleep. If we had fallen asleep we would have been carried away by the water." He and the others hung on and were finally able to wade to safety as the waters began to recede.

 

Yesterday we saw that in order to have joy in our marriages, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit. We are all given the Holy Spirit when we accept Christ as our Saviour and He works in our lives to help and guide us. The Holy Spirit produces certain attributes or fruits in our lives. One of those attributes is thankfulness.

 

With such a drive for material possessions and economic success in our world today, there has been a loss of thankfulness. Commercials, billboards, and magazines are all telling us that what we have isn't enough; that we must buy the newest and the best things. But as we see in our verses today, God desires that we would be content in Him and express an attitude of thankfulness.

 

We must be thankful always. First Thessalonians 5:18 says, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." God doesn't command us to be thankful only when things are going well. He says to be thankful in everything.

 

Many times a discontented spirit or a lack of thankfulness can cause strife in a marriage. When we become ungrateful and fail to see how God has blessed us, we can become unsatisfied with our marriage. The devil never ceases to attack marriages and he desires that we would become discontent and lose the joy of our marriage. We must thank God in every situation and praise Him for all He's done for us.

 

We must also thank God for our family. James 1:17 says, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." Every gift we have is from the Lord and that includes our family! If God has blessed you with a spouse and children, then thank Him for them! The more we thank the Lord for our spouse, the less we will become upset with them.

 

Do you have a thankful heart? Do you thank God in every situation? Make it a regular practice of your day to thank God for your family. Spend time thanking God for His great blessings! As you walk in the Spirit each day and thank Him for all He has done, you will develop a thankful heart that pleases God.

 

 

 

Daily Bible Reading

Isaiah 28-29 • Philippians 3

 

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