Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 107:1, ESV)
Many, many verses speak of gratitude or thankfulness. A Christian knows these to be godly traits we should adhere to and practice.
But why should we be grateful? The simple yet proper response to this question is that God tells me to be grateful and thankful in his Word. We should strive to be the most grateful person we can be.
So let me tell a personal story to show how gratitude has played out in my own life and maybe it will help you as you grow in thankfulness toward God and his Son Jesus.
Growing up, I had many chores around the house. There was one I particularly didn’t care for, which was cutting our big yard. It took several hours in the humid Alabama heat. It was a tough job, one that I honestly hated. The small allowance I would receive Sunday morning was the only thing that kept me going.
I sometimes despised my father for making me do this. It was hot and I honestly wanted to be on the golf course or with my friends.
The more we look back to the Savior, the more our gratitude for him will grow and be strengthened.The summer of 2008 rolled around right after my first year in college. I continued to cut dad’s grass in the summer, since I was living at home, to help out some around the house. I didn’t like doing it, but didn’t despise it as I had before. It became easier and easier to cut it with a better attitude as time went on.
This was the trend in my college years. As each summer came, I liked cutting the grass for my parents a bit more. There wasn’t any allowance, as they were doing plenty for me financially in my college years. However, it began to not matter at all. Enjoying cutting my father’s grass with a good attitude was something that was becoming normal.
Fast forward several years, I am out of my parent’s house and off their payroll, married, working full time, and taking seminary classes part-time. I can’t do it as often now, but guess what? I went from despising cutting that grass as a kid for my father to enjoying it (even without pay) to this eventually this attitude: “I can’t wait to cut my father’s grass.”
It hit me just a few months ago how and why this is true. You see, I grew to be appreciative for all my parents did for me: they loved me so well, clothed me, fed me, took care of me when I was ill, etc. I was so grateful for the 18 years I spent under their roof (and the few summers of college) that the least I could do was cut their grass.
You see, brothers and sisters, the more we look back to what Jesus did for us while he walked this earth will take your breath away. Jesus, you lived the perfect life so that your spotless righteousness would be credited to me. Jesus, you died a bloody, gross death on a cross so that all of my sins would be washed away.
And it won’t just take your breath away, dear friends. Gratitude and thankfulness will start to appear. The more we look back to the Savior, the more our gratitude for him will grow and be strengthened. Our attitude toward him will change—from feeling like we have to be grateful for what he did to feeling overwhelmed with gratitude because my God loves me so much that he sent his Son to the cross to pay for my sin.
May we all desire a heart and attitude that looks forward to cutting our Father’s grass!
—
Rosson Anderson
April 6, 2016
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.