Gratitude Is the Glory of Grace.

If we were to start with a triumvirate of thanksgiving, a trio of God’s glories to be grateful for, it might look like this: the Son of God; the Word of God; and the Grace of God.  From His grace flow the blessings of freedom, of family, of friendship, of food on the table and laughter in the air.  From Abba’s grace come all the things worth living for in this Life {and dying for, if the moment should demand it}.

Count your blessings, my friends, enumerate the gifts and glories of His Kingdom, which have been bestowed on you and I courtesy of His grace, courtesy of Abba’s limitless largesse.  We didn’t earn them and we’ll never deserve them, but they’re ours none-the-less.  How our hearts should soar in gratitude when we reflect on this reality.  If we find our hearts somewhat lacking in appreciation, what’s this really saying?  Maybe we’re in such profound pain psychologically that ‘thank you’ just seems like a million-mile march.  Maybe we’ve lived with such an entitlement / expectant mentality for so long we don’t know any other way to live.  This unholy aspect of arrogance has grooved a rut in our neural pathways and now we expect, even demand, others take care of us, watch over us, feed, clothe and house us, etc.  Ingratitude goes hand in hand with this particular pathology.  Trust me on this one.

Maybe— and in this case, the fault lies in two directions: the shepherd and the sheep— we’ve never been taught the glorious riches which are ours in Christ {Eph. 1:3-23}, the unsearchable wisdom of the treasures of God {Rom. 11:33-36}.  Or ...we just don’t believe it.  Either way, not a good prospect for the Church in the 21st century.  As “Jesus replied” to His opponents in Matthew 22:29, “You do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.”  Precisely where we are today.  And because of this they lived in “unceasing error.”  And so do we.  Because we have not known in such a way that this knowledge gets carried into the present, informing our view of God, the world, others and ourselves, because we’ve not gotten settled in our souls by faith the Scriptures and their implications in reality {like ‘resurrection’}, we have no hope in the “power of God,” no real trust that God will come through in any situation.  We are practicing agnostics at best, and atheistic pagans at worst.

But when we understand something of the nature of Abba, His essence revealed in the “radiance” of His Son {Heb. 1:3}, when we get a glimpse of His glory, a taste of His grace, one drop of His mercy after a lifetime of dying of thirst, the only genuine response of the heart should be, “Thank You....  Thank You, thank You, thank You, thank You, thank You.”  Gratitude, appreciation, a groundswell of praise.  Right?  So what’s hindering our hearts from getting caught up in this tide?  What’s keeping us from entering into the joy of our Master?  Whatever it is, and however deep it runs, Abba will remove it in His time and according to His will, if we ask Him to.  Do we have the courage to let Him break our hearts yet again— only this time not to harm, but to heal?

HJC	Ric Webb  |  Shepherd Heart’s Journey Community 9621 Tall Timber Blvd. |  Little Rock, AR 72204 t +1.501.455.0296
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Heart’s Journey – Live Generously and Love Graciously