DEVELOPING A GRATEFUL HEART | Ephesians 5:18-20

SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 5:18 "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,"

OBJECTIVES:

1.    To admonish each one of us believers to have the right attitude towards God's unfailing faithfulness;

2.    In developing a grateful heart, we develop trust and confidence in Him even in difficult times.

INTRODUCTION:

➢    This is the last Sunday with our Theme on "Declaring God's Faithfulness", and in wrapping this up, we need to establish our action plan, how we can continuously and consistently declare God's Faithfulness in our lives.  An awesome revelation about what God is to us, requires an appropriate and consistent response on our part.

➢    For our part, there is no Biblical principle better than developing a grateful attitude or heart.  (1 Thessalonians 5:16 "Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.").  Of course, we should reciprocate God's faithfulness with our faithfulness to Him, but we could easily do that by developing our gratefulness.

HEALTH AND WELL-BEING FACTORS:

➢    Our physical body is a very complex natural machine designed by the supernatural intelligence, and that is our Creator God.  It is so complex that it was built-in with receptors that automatically react and respond according to every command code.  For example, a person gets tense or angry, the receptors would cause a command to produce enzymes (adrenaline) to address the need.  i.e. When fire breaks out in your neighborhood, you can lift up  and carry a heavy equipment all by yourself.

➢    An angry person can do so much harm or could seriously harm his own health if he is not able to contain his anger!  We should understand that too much of those unused enzymes, normally acidic in nature, would cause side effects like migraine, joint pains, ulcer, accelerated aging, etc.

➢    Too often, the natural laboratory inside our body mixes compounds which are in excess or not needed because of uncontrolled emotion.  As a result, those enzymes affect our health which are not normally diagnosed with even modern medical procedures.  That is why, uncontrolled emotion can do a lot of harm in your physical health.  Tell the person next to you, "cool ka lang!".

➢    Let us do our health and well-being a big favor by "giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ". 

GOD PROVIDED A "RESET" FOR OUR BODY SYSTEMS.

➢    An unregenerate person has a capacity to do so much harm in an angry situation.  Not so with a person who truly live by the Spirit and manifests the fruit of the Spirit.  We have been liberated from such bondages.  (Galatians 5:22 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."). 

➢    If anxiety, challenges or concerns trouble you, and at times you cannot get a good sleep during the night, God has a clear instruction for you to enjoy peace that surpass all understanding. (Philippians 4:6 "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus).

➢    The "Reset" is similar to a computer "Refresh" command which enables the computer regain momentum whenever it gets slow in its multi-tasking.  Like a computer, our mind bog down with stress and pressures of life which tend to slow us down.  Verse 8 has the answer!  It gives us a life's perspective to ponder and meditate upon to overcome pessimism.  Meditate on things which would boost your morale and enthusiasm.  (8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.").  There is so much advantage in positivism.  Possibilities are opened even with difficult situations.  It goes with the principles of faith - what you can believe, you can achieve.

BENEFITS OF DEVELOPING AN ATTITUDE OF GRATEFULNESS:

1.    ALIGNING OUR HEART WITH GODS HEART.

➢    1 Thessalonians 5:18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

➢    Grateful living is God's desire for us.  He is blessed with grateful people acknowledging His benevolence.  The more we thank Him, the more He is pouring out His blessings upon us!   Our gratefulness opens the door to the surpassing generosity of God.  You cannot thank God enough more than He is able to bless you.  Would you not be happy for people who appreciate your gift?  In the same way, God is blessed if we are grateful for His goodness over our lives.

➢    Even during times of scarcity or want, these should not change our attitude of gratefulness towards God.  Because one way or the other He is sustaining our health or protecting us from dangers which we may not be aware of or hidden from us.   Our felt needs should not affect our gratefulness toward Him.  He is doing something in our lives whether we know it or not! Whether we feel it or not!

➢    Start appreciating God for your parents who brought you up.  For your siblings, for your friends, your leader.  Appreciate God for giving you your life, your transformation!  Appreciate Him for small things.

1.    BENEFITS OF HEALTH AND WELL-BEING.

➢    Philippians 4:6-7 "... by prayer, and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

➢    Do you realize how important the peace of God is?  It causes you to have a restful sleep that causes your body systems to be cleansed, heal and recover.  The immune system, referred to as the Natural Doctor that God placed inside our bodies, can only work effectively when we are in the stage of full rest.  And we can only have that quality rest when we have that peace of God keeping our hearts and minds.  Our body systems bog down when we are full of anxieties, worries, and bitterness.  And this situation causes our body systems to malfunction until we don't feel well or get sick.

➢    But with that peace ruling our hearts, we can enjoy living in the midst of life's storms.  Remember the scenario when Jesus was sleeping in the boat in the midst of a storm? (Matthew 8:24) That's the kind of peace God gives if we consistently maintain a grateful heart!

➢    Your worrying would not accomplish anything but rather bring harm to your health.  Instead, give thanks to God for His faithfulness, invoke His Lordship over your life.  Tell Him, "Lord, You are the Owner of my life, and I believe You are taking good care of me and my needs."  God is faithful, as long as you faithfully fulfill His desire, He would certainly hear you!  As long as you submit to His Lordship, He would sustain you.

CONCLUSION:

BENEFITS OF DEVELOPING AN ATTITUDE OF GRATEFULNESS:

1.    ALIGNING OUR HEART WITH GODS HEART.

2.    BENEFITS OF HEALTH AND WELL-BEING.