April Discipleship Challenge- Gratitude

THE CHALLENGE

To be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s prompting to live with a grateful heart, aware of God’s work in your life and your abundance of resources.  Internalizing that gratitude and making it a part of your everyday life.  To help others to realize the good things God does for them and to be thankful to Him for those things.

THE PRACTICE: TRY ONE OF THE FOLLOWING

·      As part of your day add prayers thanking God for all the things He does for you.  Breath prayers would be an excellent way to do a short prayer of thankfulness.  You can do them many times a day and about the many different things you are grateful for. Another quick way to practice gratitude is to sing songs that focus on who God is, what he has done, or his generosity.

·      In your longer prayers say thank you to God for at least one thing.  Then tell Him what that thing, or things, meant to you.

·      Take another moment of the day to count your blessings from God with God. You can think about how blessed you are that God is who he is, how he has given us life and salvation, or some of the daily blessings he has given us.

WHEN AND WHY

The goal is to practice this gratitude more and more throughout the day. Try to practice saying thank you to God in prayer once more during the day than you usually do.

Thanking God in prayer (practicing gratitude) should help you come to better understand that everything you have as a gift from God rather than an entitlement. It might also help you notice where you have a lack of gratitude in your life or help you repent of an idol that gets control of your heart from time to time.

 “Rejoice at all times.  Pray without ceasing.  Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  1 Thessalonians 5:16 – 18 NIV