“Thankfulness is a choice that we make. It’s just as real as any other decision.”

A though by James MacDonald (2015-06-18) from his book, Lord, Change My Attitude: Before It's Too Late (p. 63). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title of the book to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

It really is, isn’t it? And it can be a life changing decision for us today?

James says, “The psalmist wrote, ‘Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord.’ By men, of course, he meant men and women— mankind.”

Now there is a very important word there in that verse. James says, “Notice the verse says would because if it said could— ‘Oh, that men could give thanks to the Lord’— well, then the ball would be in God’s court, wouldn’t it? And we would be free to say things like, ‘It’s Your fault, God; if I could give thanks, then I would. If You hadn’t made me so negative; if You hadn’t made me so selfish; but I am, so I can’t, but I would if I could, but You didn’t, so I can’t, so … whatever.’ But it doesn’t say could, it says would, so the choice is ours.”

He then says, “’Oh, that men would …’ This means ‘we have the technology’— God has made us with the capacity to express gratitude. It’s a choice that we make. What a critical, happiness-inducing choice it really is! You can choose your attitude of gratitude as much as you can choose your diet or your underwear.”

And that choice will make a difference in how you view your day. James says, “We really have so much to be thankful for. Did the sun come up again this morning? Do you have another day to live for the glory of God? Then there is plenty to focus on for thanksgiving. You say, ‘Yeah, but there’s plenty to focus on and complain about, too.’ My point exactly. We have a decision to make.”

I am in a Mall writing this and I was in a quiet place until a group of children and their mothers came and took all the spaces around so I got up and let them also have my seat. Now I had a choice. Of course I could have been annoyed and walked away with an attitude or I could have been thankful for the excitement and vitality of those kids and for those mothers who were having a fun time with their kids. I chose to be thankful and that sure made a difference in me.

So how is your day going?

Comments

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle? Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...

“God does big things with small deeds.”

A thought by Max Lucado (2011-05-02) from his book, Cure for the Common Life (p. 115). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) I don’t know how you feel about what you are doing and how it can make a difference. You may feel that it is so small and not even worth the effort. Max says, “Begin. Just begin! What seems small to you might be huge to someone else. Just ask Bohn Fawkes. During World War II, he piloted a B-17. On one mission he sustained flak from Nazi antiaircraft guns. Even though his gas tanks were hit, the plane did not explode, and Fawkes was able to land the plane. “On the morning following the raid, Fawkes asked his crew chief for the German shell. He wanted to keep a souvenir of his incredible good fortune. The crew chief explained that not just one but eleven shells had been found in the gas tanks, none of which had exploded. “Technicians opened the missiles and found them void of explosive cha...

“Sometimes we think we’re stuck simply because things are hard.”

A thought by Matt Perman, from his book, How to Get Unstuck (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the That is a possible trap for many, isn’t it? Matt says, “But if you’re continuing to make progress and aren’t experiencing huge snags, you’re not stuck. Rather, you’re in a dip. “A dip is a temporary hard slog that you will get through if you keep pushing and don’t give up. And pushing through the hard slog is actually the fastest route to the destination. In these cases, you will be especially tempted to bail. Be discerning and able to identify that you’re in a legitimate dip and you’re not a failure.” Matt says another trap to be careful of, “Some people are stuck and don’t know it.” He goes on, “Everything can be going your way, going smoothly, and going quickly. Everything feels and seems wonderful. Yet... you are still headed toward a dead end, a form of getting stuck, if you are leaving God out of t...

Just Continue That Thought...

Search This Blog