Maintaining Thankfulness for God’s Unstoppable Love
Maintaining thankfulness for God’s unstoppable love sounds face-palmingly obvious, doesn’t it?I bring it up, because it’s actually crucial. Why?
Let’s consider two reasons.
First, thankfulness and gratitude are characteristics which prove we’re now different. Much material we see in print online and see lived out on the streets is a result of deliberately manufactured discontent aimed at fostering a divisive agenda. Those attitudes are more infectious than a virus. It’s distracting.
Second, when our sin-broken minds get caught up in such stuff, we give our circumstances more importance in our lives than our Creator. Yes, maintaining thankfulness for God’s unstoppable love is hard work. Our sanctification isn’t yet complete.
God encourages us toward a holy standard.
Because of Jesus’ obedience, God chooses us. He calls us holy, and dearly loved. With an identity like that, it’s fitting that compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, forgiveness, patience, and love, qualities listed in Col. 3:12-14, ought to mark our behavior.
One symbol of peace.
Paul continues, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” What is the peace of Christ? It’s the unshakable knowledge that God loves us, no matter what events and circumstances look like.
We’ve had the clichè “Let go and let God” around for a while, but it isn’t passivity. It takes trust, which often requires greater effort than acting in our own strength. We’re still sinful people in a sinful world, and like cranky two-year-olds, we prefer to rule ourselves. Most people don’t get pleasure from lingering near a tantrum, and when professing Christians slide into similar behavior, unbelievers are justified in calling Christians out on it.
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Ruth
Heidi Kortman