“Then Elisha summoned Gehazi. ‘Call the child’s mother!’ he said. And when she came in, Elisha said, ‘Here, take your son!” She fell at his feet and bowed before him, overwhelmed with gratitude. Then she took her son in her arms and carried him downstairs.” (2 Kings 4:36-37 NLT)
While pastoring I met a man who had been a pastor but had been asked to step down. I don’t remember the details, but he was angry about having to leave the church he’d planted and in which he’d invested so much effort. Additionally, while pastoring, he and his wife had adopted two special needs children and they’d been a handful. It was a noble thing to do, but it was as if he expected special treatment from God because of it.
He asked me one day why God seemed to ignore his prayers, why no matter how earnestly he begged God for help, He seemed silent. Assuring him I would speak with the Lord about it, he went on his way. A few days later the Lord spoke very clearly to me about my friend’s concerns, so, the next time I saw him I told him what the Lord had told me – he needed to express more gratitude for all the Lord had done for him.
Being unsure how he would respond, at first, I was reluctant, but mustered the courage to tell him exactly what the Lord had told me. He walked away in silence. It was a few months later he came to me with a big smile, telling me how helpful what I told him had been. He hugged me and thanked me for my input. I assured him I deserved no credit, as I’d done nothing but pass along what the Lord said, but he went on and on about how that simple suggestion had literally changed his life.
I thought of that scenario when I read this quote by Chris Brown: “You can’t be grateful for what you feel entitled to.” How many times we lose our way, not because we’ve fallen into sin, but because we’ve failed to be grateful for all the ways the Lord has protected, guided, filled, empowered, and used us to His glory without so much as a “Thank You, Lord!”
It’s almost as if our attitude is: “Okay, I’ve put in my time, where’s my check? I did the work, I put forth the effort, where’s my reward?” But it doesn’t work that way with the Lord. Remember the words of Jesus in Luke 17:9? “And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. In the same way, when you obey Me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’”
All gratitude and praise belong to the Lord. We’re His slaves, not His master. Thom Rainer wrote: “Anyone who believes they are entitled to something from God, know the adversary has put that thought in you, not the Holy Spirit.” Serving Jesus isn’t an obligation we fulfil, it’s a privilege and honor we rejoice in having.
Our reward for serving the Lord is the joy of a job well done; it’s the smile on His face when He says: “Well done, My good and faithful servant!” If you don’t yet know the Lord this may be foreign to you, but it’s not unlike how we’re to love our wife. If she asks us to do something, or better still, if we see something we can do that will please her and save her from having to do it, we shouldn’t be looking for thanks, the smile on her beautiful face should tell us everything we need to know.
Gratitude is an act of worship as we kneel at the feet of our Savior thanking Him for the gift of His forgiveness. If gratitude isn’t driving your service, what is?
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 