OPEN HEAVENS 25 FEBRUARY 2015: WEDNESDAY DAILY DEVOTION BY PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE TOPIC: THE BLESSING OF THANKSGIVING

OPEN HEAVENS
25 FEBRUARY 2015: WEDNESDAY DAILY DEVOTION BY PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE


TOPIC: THE BLESSING OF THANKSGIVING




MEMORISE:  It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: - Psalm 92:1



 (Luke 17:11-19 KJV)

11 And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.

12 And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:

13 And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.

14 And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.

15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,

16 And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.

17 And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?

18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.

19 And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

 Ezekiel 17-18 and Revelation 6:3-17

Thanksgiving to God, especially for gifts and blessings received, is required and expected. God abhors ungrateful people. God expects Christians to give thanks in all circumstances they are confronted with. In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Apostle Paul wrote that:
“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”Our Lord Jesus Christ also demonstrated to us the essence of thanksgiving. Several times, He gave thanks to the Father (John 11:41, Matthew 15:36, Luke 22:17).

God wants His children to thank Him and show gratitude for everything that happens in their lives. We are to thank God when we are full and when we are empty. We are to continuously show appreciation for the many things we normally take for granted. Our willingness to thank God should not be based on our mood, i.e. whether we are happy or not. It should not be based only on the things we receive and recognise as gifts and blessings; we should also thank God for the miracle of sleeping and waking up, for the gift of life, for the salvation of our souls and for divine health. Thank God for the ability to use every part of your body; that you can eat, drink, see, walk, speak, learn and interact with people. Thank God because no matter what you are going through, you are still better off in certain areas compared to some other people on the face of the earth.

Thanksgiving to God can be expressed in several different ways. However, offering thanksgiving to God in an acceptable manner guarantees an immediate response from God. Solomon chose to give a thousand burnt offerings (2 Chronicles 1:6), one of the lepers in our Bible text fell down and glorified God with a loud voice (Luke 17:15-16), while David showed gratitude in song and with dancing (2 Samuel 6:14). God responded to Solomon by giving him a blank cheque to ask for anything he wanted. The leper had a partial healing at first, but Jesus made him completely whole after he offered thanks. God was pleased with David and He established his throne forever. Each of these three received a blessing from God that was irreversible. I pray therefore that as you praise and thank the Lord for His goodness and mercy over you over your life, you will receive irreversible blessing from Him in Jesus’ Name.

 Father, please give me a heart of gratitude and put on me the garment of thanksgiving.