Tag Archives: Giving thanks

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The Sacrifice of Thanks

God Deserves Our Gratitude

God has called us to be a thankful people. Choosing to be grateful as a life response will unleash God’s power to redeem our circumstance, good or bad, which in turn unleashes divine potential to fundamentally change us in every dimension of our lives.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 7:12

If you present your peace offering as an expression of thanksgiving, the usual animal sacrifice must be accompanied by various kinds of bread made without yeast—thin cakes mixed with olive oil, wafers spread with oil, and cakes made of choice flour mixed with olive oil.

It would be easy to get overwhelmed in the details of these sacrifices, but don’t miss the bigger point of this particular verse: an express of thanksgiving. Three times between Leviticus 7:11-15, the theme of gratitude was said to be an essential part of the peace offering.

Do you realize the power of our thanksgiving to God? I don’t think you really do? Nor do I—not really. We get it to a degree, but I doubt that we really grasp the transformative power that God has built into the sacrifice of our thanksgiving unto him. The habit of giving thanks is a fundamental sign of our awareness of God, his loving rule over our lives, our spiritual adoption into his family, and his constant presence in our circumstances. That’s why Ambrose, a 4th century bishop said, “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.”

For reasons far beyond our ability to totally comprehend, God has called us to offer thanks to him—early and often. Let me suggest a few reasons why this is not only important to God, but self–benefiting to us:

      1. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of self-centeredness. Becoming self-focused is pretty easy in our selfish, narcissistic, entitlement culture. Gratitude forces us to recognize that God is at the center of the universe—not us—and that it’s only by his generosity we can even take in oxygen. Jeremiah wrote in Lamentations 3:22-23, “It’s only his mercy keeping us from utter destruction. His loving-kindness begins afresh each day” Giving thanks forces us into a perspective that sees every second of life as a gift from God. Today you got a new day because he said, “Wake up; I’m loaning you the breath of life again today.” Expressing that kind of fundamental gratitude daily keeps you focused on God’s goodness and not you —it keeps God at the center and self in check.
      2. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of self-pity. Practicing gratitude forces us into an awareness that sees God’s hand and God’s plan even in times of unfairness, disappointment and loss. King David sang in Psalm 30:11-12, “You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. I will give you thanks forever!” Thankfulness releases God’s perspective when you’d otherwise see only emotional pain behind you and hardship on the path ahead. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything; pray about it—with a thankful heart. Then God will bless you with peace that no one can completely explain—peace that will control the way you think and feel.” Bonhoeffer wrote, “Gratitude changes the pangs of memory into a tranquil joy.” A heart of gratitude will keep the spigot open to an uneven flow: my pain for God’s perspective—and the surpassing peace that floods my soul through grateful prayer.
      3. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of low self-esteem. It forces me to see how blessed I truly am: for what I have, not what I don’t, who I am, not who I ain’t, where I’m going, not where I’m stuck. What do we have? Salvation! That’s why Paul ended 2 Corinthians 9 with this outburst of gratitude: “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” Who are we? James says, “Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens…He chose to give new birth to us. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.” (James 1:17-18) Where we headed? Peter says, “How fortunate we are to have this Father! He has given new life and everything to live for, including a future in heaven! And God is keeping careful watch over both us and our future.” (2 Peter 1:3-5) No matter how down you get about your life, on your worst day you’re still an eternally-saved, heaven-bound, cherished-child of God! Gratitude anchors your self-esteem and eternal worth in that Divine reality!
      4. Thanksgiving will prevent the disease of self-perpetuating poverty. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 9:12-13, “You show gratitude through your generosity, and moved by God’s extravagance through you, those you help will respond by praying for your need.” Gratitude forces generosity. And the more you give thanks, the more God will give you to be thankful for. Andrew Murray said, “To be thankful for what we’ve received is the surest way to receive more.” God is serious about blessing our gratitude! As A.W. Tozer said, it’s, “an offering precious in the sight of God, and its one that the poorest of us can make and be not poorer but richer for having made it.”

Here is the deal: God has called us to be a thankful people. Choosing to be grateful as a life response will unleash God’s power to redeem our circumstance, good or bad, which in turn unleashes divine potential to fundamentally change us in every dimension of our lives. Sarah Ban Breathnach offered this profound thought:

You simply won’t be the same person two months from now after consciously giving thanks each day for the abundance that exists in your life. And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law: the more you have and are grateful for, the more will be given you.

Are you grateful? Then tell God…and don’t stop!

Going Deeper: Take five minutes to list everything for which you are grateful to God on a piece of paper. Don’t stop until the time is up. My guess you will not have exhausted the reasons when you are done.

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The First And Last Thing You Do

Read Psalm 5

Featured Verse: Psalm 5:3

“My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD;
In the morning I will direct it to You,
And I will look up.”

What is the first thing you do when the alarm clock rings, awakening you to another day full of exciting possibility and challenging demands? Perhaps you are one of those who rolls over and mumbles, “Good Lord, morning!” Or maybe you are the type who pops up with delight and expectation by greeting the One who gave you the gift of yet another day with, “Good morning, Lord!”

Obviously, David was of the latter variety. Not that he was an overly optimistic person—in fact, much of David’s life was lived by keeping just one step ahead of death. But he had come to appreciate the presence and protection of God so much that most of his waking moments were spent connecting with his Lord.

David was a man who had truly learned to practice the presence of God. First thing in the morning, David lifted his voice to God—and before he did anything else, he waited for a reply (that’s what he means when he says, “and will look up”). But that was also the last thing David did when he hit the sheets at night. He prayed in Psalm 119:62, “At midnight I will rise to give you thanks.”

Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why David was known as “a man after God’s own heart.” What do you suppose would happen if you and I took on David’s practices? Maybe we would develop that kind of heart after God too!

Let me suggest a 30-day trial—that the last thing you do when you go to bed is to recount as many things as you can think of for which you are grateful, and the first thing you do when you arise in the morning is lift your voice to God with gratitude that he has given you the gift of another day.

To give thanks is one of the highest callings we have and one of the most self-benefiting things we can do. Think about this: Even sitting where you are reading this devotional is a cause for thanksgiving to God. The prophet Jeremiah declared in Lamentations 3:22, “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness.”

G. K. Chesterton, who would say at the end of the day, “Here ends another day, during which I have had eyes, ears, and hands [to experience this] great world around me. Tomorrow begins another day. Why am I allowed two?”

Chesterton, Jeremiah and David had the perspective that all of life was a gift from God. Let’s you and I practice that perspective, too, every morning and evening for the next month. I have a feeling that the discipline of thankful prayer will turn into the delight of thankful prayer long after those 30 days are up.

“No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.”
—Ambrose, Bishop of Milan

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Psalm 5: The First And Last Thing You Do

Read Psalm 5

The First And Last Thing You Do

“My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD;
In the morning I will direct it to You,
And I will look up.”
Psalm 5:3

What is the first thing you do when the alarm clock rings, awakening you to another day full of exciting possibility and challenging demands? Perhaps you are one of those who rolls over and mumbles, “Good Lord, morning!” Or maybe you are the type who pops up with delight and expectation by greeting the One who gave you the gift of yet another day with, “Good morning, Lord!”

Obviously, David was of the latter variety. Not that he was an overly optimistic person—in fact, much of David’s life was lived by keeping just one step ahead of death. But he had come to appreciate the presence and protection of God so much that most of his waking moments were spent connecting with his Lord.

David was a man who had truly learned to practice the presence of God. First thing in the morning, David lifted his voice to God—and before he did anything else, he waited for a reply (that’s what he means when he says, “and will look up”). But that was also the last thing David did when he hit the sheets at night. He prayed in Psalm 119:62, “At midnight I will rise to give you thanks.”

Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why David was known as “a man after God’s own heart.” What do you suppose would happen if you and I took on David’s practices? Maybe we would develop that kind of heart after God too!

Let me suggest a 30-day trial—that the last thing you do when you go to bed is to recount as many things as you can think of for which you are grateful, and the first thing you do when you arise in the morning is lift your voice to God with gratitude that he has given you the gift of another day.

To give thanks is one of the highest callings we have and one of the most self-benefiting things we can do. Think about this: Even sitting where you are reading this devotional is a cause for thanksgiving to God. The prophet Jeremiah declared in Lamentations 3:22, “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness.”

G. K. Chesterton, who would say at the end of the day, “Here ends another day, during which I have had eyes, ears, hands [to experience this] great world around me. Tomorrow begins another day. Why am I allowed two?”

Chesterton, Jeremiah and David had the perspective that all of life was a gift from God. Let’s you and I practice that perspective, too, every morning and evening for the next month. I have a feeling that the discipline of thankful prayer will turn into the delight of thankful prayer long after those 30 days are up.

“No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.”
—Ambrose, Bishop of Milan