(Luke 17:11-19)
How often do we come to God, ask for a certain need, the Lord fills that need, and we don't even take the time to say thank you. Think back just over the last year of your life. Think back on those prayers that He has answered. What was your response when the answer came? A moment of thanksgiving? Relief that God has come through again? How quickly did you forget that answer to prayer you needed so badly and start focusing on the next problem you wanted God to handle for you?
Much of our prayer life is taken up with asking God for this and that, like
He is some kind of genie in the bottle we send our wishes to. Don't get me
wrong. God has told us to bring our needs to Him, to come to Him in prayer
with our problems. It is His pleasure to bless His children. I am simply
trying to focus you today on your response to those answered prayers. Like
the 10 lepers in the verses today, 9 never even bothered to come back to say
thank you. Are you like the 9....or the 1 who returned to give thanks?
So often we take for granted God's blessings, His love for us. The logical
question is how do I show my appreciation to God for what he has done for
me?
Start with loving Him. Loving Him means to obey Him. You obey your
parents, not so much out of fear, but because you love them and don't want
to
disappoint them. You are thankful for all they do for you and the best way
to show that thankfulness is to obey them and do what they have asked you to
do. So is our relationship with our heavenly Father. Our greatest way to
show Him how much we love and appreciate all he does is to obey Him, live
our life in a way that is pleasing and acceptable to Him.
I want to challenge you today. Be thankful for all God has done for you.
Show that gratitude by living your life in obedience to His Word. The Bible
tells us that one of the things Satan can't stand is the "word of their
testimony". Your praise reports give others going through similar
situations the hope to carry on. Think back over the last few months of something God has done for you. It will help
you to remember how good God has been to you.
I love you and am praying for you. Make sure you spend a few extra minutes
today giving God the thanks for all He has done for you. Show that thanks
to
Him by the way you live your life today. He is worthy of our praise and our
lives dedicated to His service.
