On Earth As In Heaven | Growing Up In Gratitude

On Earth As In Heaven

What does this look like?
>>Positives of Christian Faith

Research suggests that those who regularly attend services are:

• More optimistic
• Have lower rates of depression
• Less likely to commit suicide
• Have a greater purpose in life
• Less likely to divorce
• More self-controlled.

Each week — Looking at things that culture agrees on are GOOD THINGS

• But they are really GOD THINGS

So far, we have talked about:

• Perseverance/self-control
• Work as a calling
• Joy (has momentum)

Today is about a word we hear pretty often:

GRATITUDE

Our culture values gratitude but is driven by INGRATITUDE

Why does our culture value it?

Because we know it to be a good thing

Science backs this up
Study called:

Counting Blessings versus Burdens: An Experimental Investigation of Gratitude and Subjective Well-Being in Daily Life

In experimental comparisons, those who kept gratitude journals on a weekly basis exercised more, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week than those who recorded hassles or neutral life events.

Gratitude is at the heart of the Christian Faith

Here is an example…

Colossians 3:17

17 And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

I think we need to change the way we think about gratitude…

Growing Up In Gratitude

Gratitude as a kid vs Gratitude as an adult

• Grateful for THINGS vs Grateful for THE PEOPLE who gave the things
• Same for leaders in my life

Gratitude cannot be tied to THINGS; it should be tied to the GIVER of the things

Why is this important?

When gratitude is tied to THINGS, it can become a manipulation tactic

• I ACT grateful so that they won’t stop giving

The same happens with God

• Our “grateful Prayers” are focused on the STUFF God has given, and not on HIM
• We try to “ACT GRATEFUL” in our prayers so that God won’t take them away

Here’s the tough question for ALL OF US…

If God did take away what you are grateful for, would you still have a heart of gratitude

Gratitude and positive circumstances ARE NOT connected in scripture
For example:

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray constantly, 18 give thanks in everything; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 5

18 And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit: 19 speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another in the fear of Christ.

Philippians 4:6-7

6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

All of those are written by a man (PAUL) who had profound experiences of suffering…

• beatings
• Shipwrecked
• Rejected
• Sickness
• Friends killed
• Prospect of execution
• Etc

Let’s look at a story that illustrates this principle of Growing Up In Gratitude

Little CONTEXT:

Jesus has just fed the 5000

• Food was HARD to come by
• This was an incredible miracle

They went looking for Jesus the next day

• This guy can FEED US

John 6

25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

• i.e. Where did you go without us?

26 Jesus answered, “Truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate the loaves and were filled.

• You are not interested in HEARING, just in the food I can give you
• You want full bellies, not full hearts

27 Don’t work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal of approval on him.”

Jesus jumps to ETERNAL LIFE

• “We’re just looking for more food

Jesus starts talking about eternal life

• Don’t strive for what will always go away, Set your mind on eternal things
• Speaks of himself as the one who gives it

28 “What can we do to perform the works of God?” they asked.

• What must we do?
• How can we earn this?

29 Jesus replied, “This is the work of God—that you believe in the one he has sent.”

• Believe in the “Son of Man”
• Believe in me – Jesus

30 “What sign, then, are you going to do so that we may see and believe you?” they asked. “What are you going to perform? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”

Prove it

• Show us you are who you say you are
• Despite just feeding 5000 of them

God sent manna

• If you are truly God, then give us what we PHYSICALLY NEED NOW
• That’s what God did then; that’s what he should do now

They expect Jesus to grant their desires and fix their troubles as they want

• Be Like the leaders of Old who led us to victories
• Filled our bellies
• Conquer our enemies

32 Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, Moses didn’t give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

• There is something better than mana that the Father Gives
• He is giving it right now

34 Then they said, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

• We want that now!
• (Woman at the well)

35 “I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again.

Jesus is trying to get them from wanting FULL STOMACHES to FULL HEARTS

• Full stomach – hungry again
• Full heart – Always full
• Joy
• Hope
• Gratitude
• Expectation

What is Jesus pointing to?

• There are things in life that we try to “gain” hoping they will give you what we want, but they never will

You can only be so grateful for something that is only meant to supply you for a short time

• Grateful for a meal, but you will be hungry again

How does this apply to us?
Cynthia Heimel, “Tongue in Chic” column in The Village Voice, January 2, 1990

I pity celebrities, no I really do – Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, and Barbara Streisand, were once perfectly pleasant human beings. But now their wrath is awful. I think when God wants to play a really rotten practical joke on you he grants you your deepest wish and then laughs merrily when you realize you want to kill yourself. You see Sly, Bruce, and Barbara wanted fame. They worked, they pushed and the morning after each of them became famous they wanted to take an overdose. Because that giant thing they were striving for, that fame thing that was going to make everything OK, that was going to make their lives bearable, that was going to provide them with personal fulfillment and happiness had happened and they were still them. The disillusionment turned them howling and insufferable.

The reason we can’t really be grateful is because we are like the crowd…

• We only want what Jesus can “GIVE” us
• Blessing
• health
• wealth
• satisfaction in worldly things
• relationships
• “Happiness”

But Jesus didn’t come for that

• If we expect that of him, we will NEVER be grateful
• Will always be disappointed

Jesus came to give us HIMSELF

His life for ours
So we have what we ACTUALLY NEED

• Salvation
• Forgiveness
• Enduring hope

Our gratitude as Christians is not in what Jesus CAN give us but in what he already has… His life for ours.

We live lives of gratitude for the greatest gift that has already been given

Everything else is just icing on the cake

This kind of gratitude can ENDURE Difficult Things:

• Hardships
• heartache
• Loss
• Challenges
• Disappoints

As well as ENDURE Positive things:

• Success
• Fame
• Health
• Wealth

What Does True Christian Gratitude look like?

1: PAUSE and FOCUS on Jesus as the SOURCE OF OUR LIFE

Not just getting to Get

2: Get outside of your box and see other people’s stories, hardships, and successes

You may be far more blessed than you realize

3: Avoid a competitive mindset with the world around you

Have a heart to GROW what God has given you

Don’t worry about what he has given others to grow