By
Pastor Darryl Woodson
Let your speech always be with
grace, seasoned with salt…- Colossians
4:6
…in everything give thanks; for
this is the will of God… – 1
Thessalonians 5:18
Whoever offers the sacrifice of
thanksgiving glorifies Me… - Psalm 50:23
I
am like the salt to the places that I go, to the lives that I encounter, to the
situations I am involved in. I am the fragrance of Christ to all and
everything. And because from the abundance of my heart my mouth speaks, my
speech being seasoned with salt means I must remain in the Word of God. A
thankful and grateful heart is what the Lord requires of me, it is the
sacrifice that glorifies Him.
If
there is anything that helps me to understand what to have a grateful heart
means, it is these three (3);
- That being thankful means being grateful for what I have. Even the things that seem the smallest of what I have, I give thanks to God for. The little things are reason enough to give thanks.
- It means that I am grateful for the people around me. I can purposefully be thankful for my family members, my schoolmates, workmates, and everyone I engage with. 1 Timothy 2:1, 1 Thessalonians 3:9.
A
daily thankful heart for Jesus and what He did (died for me) and is doing
(interceding for me) constantly keeps me knowing that He alone is the Centre of
everything and He alone sits on the throne of my heart.
Continue earnestly in prayer, being
vigilant in it with thanksgiving. – Colossians
4:2
Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything…with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the
peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus. - Philippians
4:6-7
The
word ´anxiety´ in the context means ´careful´ or ´take thought´. It means to be
pulled between two or more things. To be confused and in between decisions can
be a place of great discomfort and a source of many a sleepless night. This
two-mindedness is spoken of as…he is a
double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. – James 1:8
If
I keep a grateful heart, it helps me not constantly be in this place of
confusion and not having all my prayers as requests.
Some
evidences of having this poor mindedness are a begging heart that seems to think that pleading with God to do
something is the only way to live. A doubting
heart that thinks God cannot do anything that they have not ´earned´. Also,
a worrying heart that tries to take
everything into its own hands.
My
mind, because I am of a thankful heart, glorifies and thanks God for every
promise, protection, for health and for family; for every Word He speaks.
So
this is the man that can do all things…Philippians 4:13…is one who is
anxious for nothing and is thankful in everything. Psalm 100:4.