Thankfulness

We just completed an 8-week focus on the theme of gratitude and, boy, was it a great experience. It all began in the middle of the summer, a low point in our attitudes about life and the future. You know how it is, I'm sure: things don't go as expected for a prolonged period of time and pretty soon you are feeling despair about it all. It wasn't anything specific for us, however. It was a collection of personal and corporate struggles that all seemed to weigh us down at the same time.

God was gracious, however, and gently revealed that we were SINNING! It was not ok to dwell on what we didn't have. In fact, letting those things weigh us down, agreeing with the "injustice" done to us because we didn't attain to what we felt we deserved, was wrong before Him. We were just grumbling to ourselves, we thought, but in reality we were saying that God was a bad leader. After all, look how He had led us up until now. On top of that, we were saying that He wasn't to be trusted with our future either. Once we saw it for what it was, we were eager to back up and change our thinking.

He provided a way forward in the form of gratitude. The more you are in touch with what God has done for you, the more your spirit comes alive with genuine love and thankfulness. We focused all our sets on this theme, gave each worship leader freedom to find themes they wanted to express before the Lord and went for it.

In no time at all, things began to shift. Our hearts were swelling with all that God had done well, and we were beginning to see that the future was going to be good if we trusted in Him. On top of all that, His presence increased among us and that encouraged us all.

Now, eight weeks later, I am eager to keep gratitude in the centre of the way we approach what we do here. Lord, keep us from our self-centered pursuits. Give us clear eyes to see what you are really doing in our midst.

Blessings,

Brian Creary
Ministry Director
Sent from my BlackBerry