SCRIPTURE
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” 1 Chronicles 16:34
SPOTLIGHT
There is an old story told about a man who said to his wife one Thanksgiving morning, “I’m going to have a good day today.” “How are you going to have a good day today?” she asked. He replied, “Well, the best way to have a good day is to give something away.” The old man’s wife suggested, “If you want to do that, then give something to the shoemaker. He needs something with all those children of his.” He responded by saying, “I will give him the biggest turkey I can find.”
When the shoemaker family saw that big turkey, they decided, “We will give this little hen that we were going to have for dinner to the widow next door. It is hardly big enough for us to taste but it will be a nice meal for her.” The widow had been hungry for chicken and noodles and was delighted with the little hen. She told the shoemaker, “I can’t eat this pie now that I have the chicken; I will take the pie to that young boy whose mother does washing for people. She probably hasn’t had much time for baking.” So the widow took her pie to the washerwoman who said, “I love pie and now I won’t need this cake. I will take it to that big family of children across the way.”
When the children got the cake, they cut it so each one could have a piece. Then they decided to wrap the one last piece of cake and take it to the crippled boy across the street. That boy, with a thankful heart, ate the cake and carefully saved every crumb for the birds outside his window. As the birds ate the crumbs from the windowsill, they sang a song of thanksgiving.
Are you a grateful person? You cannot be happy without being thankful and you cannot be truly thankful, without sharing. And when you share, it will surprise you how great an impact you have on others.
Good days in life are a result of a grateful heart. Living with an attitude of gratitude to God makes something good out of every day. Good days happen when you start by being thankful. This attitude becomes contagious. You pass it on to others.
1 Chronicles 16 outlines David’s prayer of gratitude. It is so moving as he thanks God for being great, good and giving:
1. GREAT - 1 Chronicles 16:11
2. GIVING - 1 Chronicles 16:7 & 12
3. GOOD - 1 Chronicles 16:34
Gratitude to God gives you:
1. Hope for today and tomorrow.
2. Perspective on how to live and plan.
3. An attitude that makes people want to be around you.
4. A generous spirit.
SOMETHING TO DO
Name three ways God shows His greatness!
1.
2.
3.
Now name three things God has given to you.
1.
2.
3.
Finally, name three ways that prove God is good…all the time.
1.
2.
3.
SOUL TIME PRAYER
Now pray to God what you have just written in "SOMETHING TO DO."