Thank Him For Afflictions

When we are under afflictions, are we to give thanks for personal grievances? Yes; there is something in them for which we may, we ought to be thankful. But how? Not for the afflictions considered in themselves, for so they are not joyous, but grievous. But if they be for righteousness’ sake, then are they blessed dispensations, then they are occasions of joy, and so of praise, Mat. 5. Then they are gifts, special favours, and so oblige us to thankfulness: Phil. 1:29, ‘Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.’

-David Clarkson, from Pray For Everything, volume 2 of Works, page 173

Ingratitude

I have heard it said that the greatest sin we commit is ingratitude. If you think about it, when we stop being thankful for what God has done for us, we become discontent and wanton. John Flavel preached a rather reproving sermon on ingratitude. Below is an excerpt.

Your ingratitude is the ready way to deprive you of the mercies you have, and to withhold from you the mercies you might have in your future distresses and wants. He that is ungrateful for mercies received, provokes God to remove them… If you are weary of your mercies, and willing to be rid of them, you cannot take a more effectual course than to forget from whom you had them, and withhold His praise for them.

Sure I am, there are some among you who have quickly forgotten the God that delivered you. Some that have abused him to his face, by ascribing his mercies to good luck, chance , and fortune: not once owning him as your deliverer. And some that have made his mercies weapons of sin, to wound him withal, wasting your estates by prodigality, which were given to refresh your families, and God’s poor; yea, abusing them to drunkenness and luxury. And is this the thanks you return to him? For which of all my good works (saith Christ to the Jews) do you stone me? So say I, for which of all God’s kindnesses to you, do you thus dishonour, and abuse him?

O let shame cover your faces this day! Go, reader, fold down this leaf, and get thee to thy knees, and say, I am the man to whom this reproof is sent. I have abused the God of my mercies, I have turned his grace into wantonness.

God forgive me!

Prayerless

“P.T. Forsyth once said, ‘The worst sin is prayerlessness.’ Does this statement surprise us? We usually think of murder and adultery as among the worst offenses against God and humanity. But the root of all sin is self-sufficiency–independence from the rule of God. When we fail to wait prayerfully for God’s guidance and strength, we are saying with our actions, if not with our words that we do not need Him. How much of our service is actually a “going it alone”?
The opposite of such independence is prayer in which we acknowledge our need of God’s guidance and empowerment. In this respect we have seen the example by Jesus in the Gospels. He lived and served in complete dependence on His Father. Contrary to popular views, such dependence does not limit or repress human personality. We are never so fully personal–free to become our true selves–as when we are living in complete dependence on God.”

-The Tyranny of The Urgent, Charles E. Hummel; IVP Books

My wife showed me this quote and I had to share it. Thanks honey!

Grace and Ingratitude

Is everything we do and every thought we think, done with the acknowledgement that God has been gracious? Are we thankful? Are we praising God for the blood of Christ even in the minutest happenings of our lives?

Therefore every breath we take, every time our heart beats, every day that the sun rises, every moment we see with our eyes or hear with our ears or speak with our mouths or walk with our legs is, for now, a free and undeserved gift to sinners who deserve only judgment.

I say “for now” because if you refuse to see God in his gifts, they will turn out not to be gifts but High Court evidence of ingratitude. The Bible speaks of them first as “the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience” that point us to repentance (Romans 2:4). But when we presume upon them and do not cherish God’s grace in them, “Because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed” (Romans 2:5).

But for those who see the merciful hand of God in every breath they take and give credit where it is due, Jesus Christ will be seen and savored as the great Purchaser of every undeserved breath. Every heartbeat will be received as a gift from his hand.

-John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life

He Gave Us Fathers

It’s A Wonderful Life is my favorite movie of all time. In the scene above, George Bailey’s honeymoon has just been canceled by a run on the bank. In a moment of gathering himself, he stops and takes a look at the picture of his deceased father hanging on the wall of his office. I can only imagine what would have been going through his mind at this moment, but for some reason this particular scene has been replaying in my mind as of late.

With my Dad’s passing almost five months ago, I find myself wanting to talk to him and wishing I had gotten more advice from him while I had the opportunity. He had real character. Realizing that he isn’t around for me to talk to feels so foreign and seems to hit me as if I have been awoken suddenly from a deep sleep. The reality of it all is still so incomprehensible to me. Behold the sting of death for those that wait for it but are laid waste through the collateral damage of lost loved ones. While I still live, I am reminded to be a good father, to be a good husband, to be a good steward of what God has placed in my charge. I am reminded to be thankful.

I thank God for godly parents. I thank God that I had a good Dad. I thank God that I will see him again. I thank God that there is an example behind me and a goal before me. I thank God that He will wipe away all tears and sadness. I thank God for His Son.

Thank God!

A Thought on Thankfulness

“He that thinks himself unworthy of anything, will be thankful for everything; and he who thinks himself unworthy of any blessing, will be contented with the least. Therefore, let us work our hearts to humility, in consideration of our sinfulness, vileness, and unworthiness, which will make us thankful: especially of the best blessings, when we consider their greatness, and our unworthiness of them. A proud man can never be thankful. Therefore, that religion which teacheth pride, cannot be a thankful religion. Popery is compounded of spiritual pride: merit of congruity, before conversion; merit of condignity, and desert of heaven, after; free will, and the like, to puff up nature. What a religion is this! Must we light a candle before the devil? Is not nature proud enough, but we must light a candle to it? To be spiritually proud is worst of all.”  - (Richard Sibbes Vol. 2; Page 272)