I am participating in a group writing project for Faithful Bloggers that has the theme of “Death, Burial, and Resurrection.”
I’ve had the title of the project rolling around in my head for a while now, but just was not able to put anything down in writing. Then, I started reading a book called Choosing Gratitude by Nancy Leigh DeMoss and this line caught my attention:
“Try…to sustain persevering faith–without gratitude–and your faith will eventually forget the whole point of its faithfulness, hardening into a practice of religion that’s hollow and ineffective.”
I thought of the times when I have gone through the motions of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus, maybe even acknowledging its power, without truly experiencing deep gratitude for what I’ve been given because of it.
I can experience life to the fullest when I live with thankfulness for the forgiveness and mercy available to me because of what Christ did.
So why is it that I don’t live that way, that we as believers don’t live in that attitude of thankfulness more often? The reasons probably vary, but I would venture to say that many times we get so caught up in the everyday responsibilities, problems, and pettiness that we forget the big picture. Christ died, rose, and is coming again–for us!
When we focus our attention on that, saying “thank you” doesn’t seem nearly enough! How can we better express and live a life of gratitude? Let your imagination soar! Sing, dance, talk, write, get to know the One who saved you, and the list could go on!
Let me close with Paul’s prayer from Ephesians 1:17-20:
“I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms…”
Leave a Reply