2 Thessalonians 2:16,17 “May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.”
An old legend tells how a man was once lost for days in a dark forest and stumbled across an imposing barn. He sought shelter inside it because of the howling winds. His eyes grew quickly accustomed to the dark and he was amazed to discover that this barn was where the devil kept his storehouse of seeds. These were the seeds that were sown in the hearts of humans. He lit a match and looked at all the different types of seeds. Most of them, surprisingly, were labeled ‘Seeds of Discouragement’. Just then one of the devil’s helpers arrived to pick up a new load of seeds. The man asked him: “Why so many discouragement seeds?” The helper laughed and replied: “Because they’re so effective and they take root so quickly.” “Do they grow everywhere?” the man asked, to which the helper suddenly grimaced back at him and said in disgust: “No. They never seem to grow in the heart of a grateful person.”
It’s simplistic to put down all our discouragements to a lack of gratitude, but gratitude has an undeniably powerful and positive effect on us when we’re going through tricky times. The sages said that ingratitude was our most besetting sin, so they developed a good motto: “Nothing taken for granted; everything received with gratitude; everything passed on with grace.”
Are you discouraged today? Is anything sapping your joy, or dragging you down? Re-read the above verse, which encourages us to keep things in perspective. List all the positives in your life, the blessings you have, and be renewed in your spirit.
Lord, I choose today to take nothing for granted, to receive everything with gratitude, and to pass on everything with grace. Amen!
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