Please And Thank You, God!
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If a fellow isn’t thankful for what he’s got, he isn’t likely to be thankful for what he’s going to get.
Frank A. Clark
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/be_thankful.html
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It seems as if I must have reminded my grandson about a million times since he was old enough to understand the concept, of the importance of saying “Please” and “Thank You”! And I imagine I will most likely need to remind him at least a million more times before that surreal moment when I hear those words emerge from his lips, unprompted by me or another whose job it is to keep him alive and with at least a fundamental knowledge of proper etiquette, until he reaches the age of maturity! After all, isn’t a modicum of gratitude the least we owe others when they do something good or kind for us? And then I realized something quite startling. We may well say those two “golden words” when dealing with the people in our lives, but how often…..if ever…..do we say them to the God of our life?
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The Bible says time and time again that we should praise and be thankful to Him. “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits..” from Psalm 103:2 ESV, is a gentle reminder. “Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Who can utter the mighty deeds of the Lord, or declare all his praise?” from Psalm 106;1-2 ESV, is more an urging. And “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” from Philippians 4:4-7 ESV, is akin to being hit over the head with a 2X4! But, the bottom line is that, unlike my million reminders to my grandson, we never should need these same tactics to remember giving Him our thanks! It should be as automatic to us as is our heartbeat to our life force!
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He did not beg our approval to give us the beauty we see all around us in the world. He did not need urging from us to give us the gift of Salvation! And He did not expect our appreciation for His gift of the fruit of the spirit (manifestations of His power and presence) which gives us the strength to carry on every day! Yes, all of these things were given willingly and without expectation of payment from us, which is the definition of a gift, is it not? And like with any gift, it behooves us to acknowledge our appreciation by saying a heartfelt thank you. Unless we are not thankful for all He has given us. Can that even be a remote possibility? God forbid!
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“At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children..”
Matthew 11:25 ESV
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