Developing a Thankful Heart

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Develop a thankful heart

Developing a Thankful Heart

 

“Offer unto God thanksgiving, and pay thy vows unto the highest. And call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me” (Psalm 50:14-15).

Thankful Celebration

On the fourth Thursday of November, we celebrate Thanksgiving. During this national holiday, people gather around a table and enjoy a feast of delicious food.  On this occasion, several families related to one another reunite to express their thoughts and share a meal.

Sharing Blessings

Some family Thanksgiving practices include a brief time when everyone at the table has a chance to say why they are thankful. To sit around that table, I may have to leave my house, travel to my relative’s home, and visit with close and distant kin folks.

If I am unable to attend such a time away, there is still a need for me to celebrate Thanksgiving in some way. Doing so overcomes my natural tendency to care for my own needs to the exclusion of the needs of others.

Not Always Thankful

When I was growing up as an only child, the challenge was always present for me to accomplish what I was required to do, with a good attitude. I met the requirement goals, but the good attitude at times lagged behind.

My parents had a rough time raising me. I proved to be an ornery kid. Once my Dad, the minister, had invited an evangelist to come preach evangelistic services for a week at his church. On the way to the church, every night, the evangelist and I shared the back seat of the car. My parents were in the front seat, with my Dad driving.

A Grateful Turnaround

That evangelist had figured out I was a problem kid. He nailed me with looks, saying nothing. I appreciated him greatly! My turnaround as a teenager began with that gentle giant of a man.

My parents knew they had a problem. They did their best to raise me to be godly. They prevailed! Their untold number of prayers to God, He resoundingly answered in the affirmative.

I thank God for the many positive influences of my parents and other people God has put in my path over the years of my life. They helped me grow and develop into a person who honors God with a grateful heart.

https://youtu.be/X9-PxeNrd9c

https://youtu.be/X9-PxeNrd9c  Give Thanks

Thanksgiving is gratitude.

My parents were grateful God gave them a child to raise. 

Gratitude is appreciation. They appreciated God entrusting them with the responsibility to train their child in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. 

Appreciation is closely related to contentment. My parents tried to have another child after I was born, but there were no additional children. They were content to pour their lives into raising me to glorify God.

Living a Thankful Life

It was not an easy job for them. I made their life difficult at times. Their efforts paid off. I am living my life under submission to God’s authority.

Abiding in the Lord, my life is bearing fruit. I am at a place in my life where I want others to pick the spiritual fruit God has developed in me. I want them to taste God in every bite. May God make His grace so delicious they want God to produce His fruit in them too.

To get to this place we need to realize our constant dependence on God and frequently call on Him for His help. To me, this is a picture of abiding in the Lord.

May God be beautiful in your life today!

Shirley Logsdon

Additional reading

Feasting at the Father’s Table

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About Shirley Logsdon

I am the only child of Christian parents who wanted me to know God personally as they did. One night during church we watched a movie depicting a family in their home accepting Jesus as their personal Savior. I was nine and realized then my desire to make Jesus my personal Savior. With the full support of my parents, I met with the pastor and prayed to receive Christ. A few years later, several of us around the same age began classes for our confirmation to become church members. The privilege of taking communion was a special time for me. . During my teenage years I was outwardly complacent, but was inwardly rebellious. I developed the nasty habit of disrupting harmony in the household by nitpicking at anything and everything. A preacher came to hold revival services at my dad’s church and nailed me silently with looks. This helped me tremendously. I turned a corner and began to respect and obey my parents in attitude and actions. I survived these years through prayer (mine, my parents and friends). The love and tenacity of my parents and God’s grace got me through these years of upheaval. I readily identify with David the Psalmist when he said in Psalm 25:7, “Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to Thy mercy remember Thou me for Thy goodness’ sake, O LORD.” Because my parents provided a stable home life for me, when I went to college my Christian values remained intact. After completing my education in 1979, I started working. For a while, I worked at temp agencies, then I did odd jobs. I settled down in a secretarial position in 1986 working for a firm specializing in retirement plan administration. In 2007, I started working for a law firm, eventually becoming a knowledge management assistant in their law library, helping to alert attorneys to new business opportunities. I am a productive citizen of my country in large part because my parents prayed for me and made clear by word and example what they expected of me. I am extremely grateful to God for them. John 15:5 is my life verse: “I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing.” I am confronted with this realization every day I live, and it helps keep me on the straight and narrow path. I met my future husband at church. After a few years of our two families getting acquainted, he and I started courting. We married at the church where we met, in the presence of many relatives and friends. We have been married for 29 years. My hobbies are reading, cooking, and canning or freezing what my beloved husband grows in the garden. Also, I thoroughly enjoy writing. While my writing has included poems, most of my writing has been letters to family and friends. I like to share my faith when I write and am fond of adding a Bible verse or two to help focus on the source of our life. Since I am now retired after working 38 years, I can concentrate on keeping up with birthdays. Something else I enjoy is studying the Bible, often with others. Blogging is a new form of writing for me. I am getting my feet wet and I’m beginning to enjoy the experience.

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