Grateful

[00:00:00] Foreign. [00:00:04] I'm Pastor Chuck Allen, and welcome to another weekday podcast where today I want to shift gears and talk about the kind of gratitude that fuels faith. [00:00:15] There's this moment that is tucked into Paul's letter to the Thessalonians. [00:00:21] He says, be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. Now, that's Thessalonians 5:18 and the new living, which I love to preach from. [00:00:35] Now, that verse, it doesn't say be thankful for all circumstances, it says, be thankful in them. [00:00:44] In the middle of the chaos, in the middle of the traffic, in the middle of the diagnosis, the let down, the silence, when your prayer feels like it's bouncing off the ceiling, going nowhere, be thankful in it. [00:00:59] Friends, that's not denial, that's defiance. Defiance that is facing and is fighting despair. [00:01:08] Because gratitude, real gratitude, it doesn't grow best in comfort. It grows in resistance. And here's what gratitude does. Gratitude will shift your focus from what isn't to what is, from what's missing to what is already here. It rearranges the furniture in your soul so that faith has room to breathe again. [00:01:33] I've seen it in hospital rooms when somebody whispers, lord, thank you for another morning while hooked up to the machines. [00:01:42] I've seen it in the job seeker who still prays the same prayer every day. [00:01:48] God, I trust you'll use this waiting gratitude. It's the lifeblood of our faith. Because when you give thanks, you're telling your soul that God is still present, still working, still good. [00:02:03] It's like fuel for belief. Every act of gratitude pours gasoline on the flame of faith. [00:02:11] You've heard the text from Romans 8:28, and we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God. [00:02:19] Gratitude takes that promise and says, I may not see how yet, but I trust that good is still being written in, around and for me. [00:02:32] So what if you started right there today? [00:02:35] Not a gratitude list to make God happy, but a gratitude habit to remind you that God is near you when you wake up. Thank him for breath when you eat lunch, thank him for nourishment when you lay down tonight, thank him for rest. [00:02:51] And maybe in between, thank him for something that doesn't make sense yet. That thing you're waiting on, that thing that hurts, that thing that you don't understand. Because faith grows where gratitude flows. [00:03:06] When I just said that, it made all kind of sense. [00:03:08] Faith grows where gratitude flows, Y'. All. [00:03:12] Let's finish up with this simple prayer today. Lord, would you'd open our eyes to see what's already good, to grow our faith through gratitude, and to give us a thankful heart that sees yous hand even in our waiting. [00:03:28] Amen. Amen. And Amen, y'. All. Thanks so much for joining me on the weekday podcast. Bobby and I consider this such a wonderful blessing to be able to take a little bit of scripture, a little bit of encouragement, put it all in a cup, and let you sip from something that is encouraging and enriching in your life. We're honored and we're grateful. God bless you. Bye, now.