Our church earmarked January 1-21 for community prayer and fasting. I fasted from the news and added systematical Bible-reading and prayer. At the end, I decided to continue that program.
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But only 3 days later, I stumbled and fell flat on my face.
I needed to apologize. I didn’t want to. I thought of all the reasons that I shouldn’t have to. I thought that apologizing to Jenna (who heard the whole thing) would be enough. It wasn’t. My heart remained heavy.
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Those 21 days included Wednesday prayer meetings. We could not attend, so we watched later, online. It was Saturday after these events before we watched the 1/21 meeting.
Pastor Steve began by saying that this wasn’t his originally planned message. God had redirected him a couple of days before. He proceeded to share “God’s will for our lives.”
Rejoice always, pray continually,
give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV
“Your biggest problem is not feeling bad enough about what’s wrong with you, it’s not feeling good enough about what’s right with God,” he said.
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I was fixated on what is wrong with me.
I’m listening, Lord.
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Gratitude is a response to God’s goodness and gifts. “Focus on what you’ve been given not what you lack. The opposite of gratitude is grumbling. Grumbling leads to bitterness, bitterness leads to blindness to God’s goodness,” he said. We all owe a great deal of “overdue gratitude” to God.
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By His grace I have running water in the kitchen, in Jenna’s bathroom,
and in my tub … and no ruptured pipes. Reason alone for gratitude.
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Gratitude is a mindset: a constant state of awe and thanksgiving. A spirit of entitlement is anti-gospel.
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Running water is a blessing, not a right.
All I have is a gift from God. I am not entitled to any of it.
Everything is His grace.
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Gratitude keeps us growing and moving forward. “IN” all circumstances, not “FOR” all circumstances, REGARDLESS of our circumstances. Grumbling keeps us stuck.
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Okay, Lord, I hear You. I’m stuck and I don’t like it.
Please forgive me.
I will call and apologize to Vince. Tomorrow.
***
Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper,
but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
Proverbs 28:13 NIV