Date: December 05, 2021 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 31
Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours without measure from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord. It gives me great delight to welcome you to the last month of this year, the month of December 2021. And I pray that your life and home will overflow with gladness and peace all through it, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Now, as we come to this very last month of the year, I want to admonish you to use it to appreciate God and all the people He has used to bless you in one way or the other in the year. Why do you need to appreciate God? First, it is because that is His will for you (1Thess 5:18). The will of God is that everyone living in the world that He created and enjoying His provisions there would show themselves grateful to Him, regardless of the circumstances in which they find themselves. So, even if certain things are not working well for them in the world at the moment, they still need to learn to be thankful to Him for those things that are working well for them. That is because things could have been worse for them, if it had not been for Him (Ps 124).
Second, you need to appreciate God because it is what will open the door for you to receive more from Him and to also receive a perfection of what you have received from Him (Ps 50:23). See, whatever we have right now, however wonderful or unpleasant it may be, is not the best for us in this life. There is always something better in God’s hand, something beyond what our minds can handle or fathom (Eph 3:20). And until we learn to give thanks to Him for the gift of life and also for all the good things in our lives, we will not be showing ourselves as worthy to receive more from Him or to have Him perfect the things that are not working well for us.
So, instead of looking at the things that are not working well in your life and complaining about them, take out time to first consider carefully the things that are working well in your life and give God thanks for them. Remember that every good and perfect gift comes from Him. So, if anything is working well in your life at all, He is the one responsible for it. And you should acknowledge that and be truly thankful to Him for it. (Cf. Ps 103:1-5; Is 26:12; James 1:17)
Also, don’t allow yourself to get carried away because of the few good things God has done for you in life and forget to be thankful to Him. That is because there is always more to receive from Him. And if you will not be thankful for whatever He has already done for you, will you not be shutting the door to receive more from Him against yourself? Remember those ten lepers that Jesus healed. Only one of them came back to thank Him. Others were too excited to remember to come back and thank Him. And it was only that one man that came back to thank Him that received one more word of blessing from Him – your faith has made you whole. In like manner, it is only those who return to thank God this year end for all He has done for them in it that will receive more from Him and also a perfection of all He has done for them. (Cf. Luke 17:11-19)
How, then, do you show God that you are grateful to Him for all He has done for you this year? First, you show it by praising Him with your words, songs and dances (2Sam 6:14; Luke 17:15; Acts 3:8). Second, you show it by giving to Him. In other words, you give something for His cause, the cause of the gospel. So, if you have not deliberately done anything for the kingdom of God this year in appreciation of what He has been doing in your life, prepare to do so this month. Third, you show it by continually using whatever He has done for you to promote His righteousness.
Finally, as I pointed out before, it is not only God you are to appreciate this year end; you are also to appreciate all the people He has used to bless, protect or lift you up in the year. I know none of us can actually know all the people God has used or is using to make life better and safer for us. But there will always be some individuals that we can point to the remarkable roles they have played in our lives. And we should think of ways to appreciate them too. That is because if they had not yielded themselves to be used by God for us, certain exaltation or salvation we experienced in the year may probably have been delayed or postponed.
Now don’t make excuses about this. It does not always cost much to appreciate people, if we will learn to be thoughtful. So, be like David, who, in the day of his prosperity, sent gifts to all his friends that accommodated and provided for him during the time he was roaming about because of King Saul (1Sam 30:26-31). And may God abundantly supply you with all kinds of good things this December, so that you can be truly grateful to Him and to all the people He has used for you this year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Do have a great December 2021.
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