God has blessed Americans financially when compared to the rest of the world but we often don’t give him the gratitude he deserves. According to the website mic.com, “someone at the poverty line in the United States is in the top 14% of the global income distribution.” But, if you are living at the poverty line, you probably don’t feel like you’re in the top 14% of anything. Despite the biblical commands to be content, you likely exhibit discontentment concerning your financial lot in life.
When we don’t have a grateful heart for what God provides, we tend to not value what he gives us. We won’t see his provision with gratitude. We waste money or give it all away. Instead of using what he provides to attend to our needs, we will seek to obtain the things we feel are missing in our lives.
This article will teach you gratitude and show you how to, in everything, give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. You may never be rich, but you can still be grateful.
A Lack of Gratitude Warps Your Thinking
In the first chapter of the book of Romans, the apostle Paul tells us this, “because, although they knew God, they did not glorify [Him] as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” – Rom 1:21 NKJV, emphasis added. Understand. We have the freedom to ignore God. We can refuse to worship him or glorify his majesty. We can be ungrateful for all his benefits, but we do this to our own detriment. Our minds become corrupted when we reject the sovereign of the universe and the things he has created and provided to us.
If we worship and depend on money to solve our problems, rather than seeing God as our answer and listening to him, we won’t be able to recognize the truth at all. Our thoughts become futile and our hearts are darkened. We won’t be able to think straight.
However, when we yield our hearts to the Holy Spirit, we get the mind of Christ and learn to think like him. We learn to recognize God’s work in our lives, and we become thankful and grateful. “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is [rightly] judged by no one. For ‘who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” – 1Co 2:14-16 NKJV, emphasis added.
Gratitude is God’s Will for Us
Paul tells us in the epistle to the Thessalonians, “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:18-19 NKJV emphasis added. Being thankful for all that the Lord gives us, puts us squarely in the will of God.
Gratitude is the best attitude if we want to strengthen the Holy Spirit’s power in our lives. When we are grateful for everything and use thankful words in our prayers, we invite the Holy Spirit to be present instead of quenching his influence over us.
When we bitterly complain and are full of malice, corruption, and wrath, we quench the Holy Spirit’s power for our lives. If we have an ungrateful heart instead of a heart of gratitude, we do not walk in God’s will and impart grace to those who hear us.
The Attitude God Blesses
When we gratefully acknowledge what God provides for us, we can think clearly about money and make better financial decisions. We can be confident that we spend, save, and give our money in a way that is in God’s will. And we won’t become anxious and worried about money. We can learn to trust God and thank him for always giving us the things we need.
Best of all, we can learn to be content with what God gives us. The scriptures teach us this, “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’” – Heb 13:5 NKJV. And in another place we read, “Now godliness with contentment is great gain.” – 1Ti 6:6 NKJV. If we are content with the things we have, and are thankful for all we are given, we are rich. It doesn’t matter how much or how little money we have.
Would you like to watch a couple of great videos on this subject? Here are links to a couple of my favorites.
11-12-17 Life. Money. Legacy – Pride Poverty and Gratitude – Dave Ramsey Series