Developing An Attitude Of Gratitude

Acts 3 : 2 - 9, And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, "Look at us." So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them -- walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God. NKJV

The man who was healed at the gate Beautiful was grateful to God and didn't care who knew it. Are you in need of God's divine favor in your life today? Jesus tells us that God knows what our needs are, even before we bring them to Him in prayer. Nevertheless, if we have an attitude of gratitude, we will patiently wait for God to supply. God has put certain principles in place, and He requires us to both know and abide by them in order to show that we are humble before Him. 

James teaches us in his epistle that God gives grace to the humble, but He opposes the proud. Throughout the Bible, you can see where God deals with His people over the generations about the issue of pride. Pride can stand in the way of God's blessings being released into His people's lives. 

Pride can be manifest in various ways and adversely affect a Christian's ability to receive from God. Vanity can cause discontent; and it will get in the way of us getting the touch from God that we need because we will focus only on what we don't have or on the desire that isn't fulfilled. If we give a place to a mindset that is fueled by pride, then it can cause us to grow dissatisfied with God's provision and timing. When we allow discontent to influence our hearts, we will begin to develop a negative attitude toward God.

If we're not careful, instead of having a humble attitude toward God, where we are thankful for all that He has done for us, we will become impatient; and we will begin to demand from Him that our needs be met. This doesn't happen overnight. However, it will develop over time if left unchecked. Therefore, we must be careful to guard our hearts from poisonous thoughts that cause us to feel like a victim of God, instead of being grateful to Him.

We need to be honest with ourselves before God. Do we have an attitude of gratitude today? Are we discontented with the way God has dealt with us about our needs or desires? Do we take the time to thank Him for all that He has deposited in our lives? Are we focused only on what God hasn't done for us? By answering these few questions honestly, we can see just where we are on the road to developing an attitude of gratitude in our hearts.

If you believe that you have fallen short in the process of having a thankful disposition toward God, then the first step is being willing to recognize it, and the next step is to change it. Consequently, you can begin to challenge thoughts of discontent when they come to mind with thoughts of thanksgiving before the Lord. As you practice these steps, you will begin to experience a life of freedom filled with hope and expectation. Once the hindrances of the enemy are disarmed, you will sense a joy in your heart that will erupt into thanksgiving for the freedom from pride. Now you can live the remainder of your life with an attitude of gratitude and be blessed.

Thankful to God for You,
Pastor Asa Dockery