12 Disciplines of a Grateful Heart

Part 2

1.   Give thanks as a holy discipline independent of feelings.

At times our hearts are cold and we don’t feel very thankful,

especially during times of trial. The last thing we ‘feel’ like doing

is giving thanks to God for the storms in our lives.

We don’t feel like praising Him, we don’t feel like being grateful.

But, should we live our lives running on feelings? No!

The Bible tells us that our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked

(Jeremiah 17:9) and it also tells us that if we trust in our heart,

we are fools.

Proverbs 28:26

 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool:

but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.

We are to give thanks, despite our feelings. We must lay aside

our feelings and give thanks, whether we feel like it or not.

It is our duty. God commands it.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God

 in Christ Jesus concerning you.

When we begin to give thanks, despite how we feel,

our words often kindle a small fire that works its way

from our lips down to our hearts and then the gratitude

begins to flow from our hearts and not just our lips.

Being grateful is a choice we have to make.

We must choose to give thanks. We need to see it

as something we owe to God, regardless of how we feel.

When we begin to give thanks, in spite of everything

that is going on around us, God brings along the ‘feelings’ that

may have not been there in the beginning.

We are to make that choice to be thankful, as a holy discipline

independent of feelings. We know that our feelings

are feeble and swayed by every little thing.

But God’s word doesn’t change, and God’s commands

are not something to take lightly.

If God is commanding us to be thankful,

which He is, then our feelings don’t come into it.

It doesn’t matter whether we feel like it or not.

Begin to speak the words of gratitude, and God

will bring the feeling. We give our words with our lips,

 and He works on our hearts and gives the feeling.

Hebrews 13:15

By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually,

 that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

“Feelings come and feelings go,
And feelings are deceiving;
My warrant is the Word of God--
Naught else is worth believing.

Though all my heart should feel condemned
For want of some sweet token,
There is One greater than my heart
Whose Word cannot be broken.

I'll trust in God's unchanging Word
Till soul and body sever,
For, though all things shall pass away,
HIS WORD SHALL STAND FOREVER!”

Martin Luther

(12 disciplines taken from a sermon by Paul Thigpen)

12 Disciplines of a Grateful Heart

“If we cultivate the discipline of gratitude, we can overcome the temptation to turn our backs on the Lord in self-absorption as the nine lepers did. Instead, like that healed Samaritan, we'll be sure to run toward the Lord, fall at His feet, and whisper often the words He delights to hear: "Thank you." P. Thigpen

Recently, I read a sermon by Paul Thigpen on the subject of Gratefulness. In it, he outlined 12 disciplines of a grateful heart. I found them to be very helpful in developing a heart of gratitude in my own life.

I have found that becoming continually grateful is not something that just comes naturally to me. It has to be cultivated. It has to be worked on.

” I tremble as well to remember that ingratitude is a clear indicator of the heart turned in on itself of the proud, restless ego that is never satisfied, that believes the world owes it whatever it can get. Whether complaining that the gift is not good enough, or too absorbed in the gift to say thanks, the ingrate spurns the Giver in favour of self.” P.Thigpen

I know that for me, I have to consciously make myself think thoughts of gratitude and take time to sit and ponder all the things in my life that I can thank God for.

I know that often, when I come to God in prayer, my prayers are that of supplication and intercession. These things are needful, but to have a heart of thankfulness, and adoration pleases the Lord and brings honour to Him all the more.

We are commanded many times in scripture to give thanks to the Lord. It’s not just a suggestion that we praise God, but a command! The command to praise Him is just as important as the command to love others.

Psalm 136:1 O give thanks unto the LORD;

 for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.  

If you read the whole of Psalm 136, you’ll notice the phrase “his mercy endureth forever” repeated over and over. Why? In this passage, the Psalmist is bringing our attention to the many wonderful works of the Lord, telling the people to give thanks to the Lord and then giving them the reason to be thankful. “his mercy endureth forever”. This Psalm doesn’t just apply to a people long ago, but to us in this day and age. His mercy still endures forever. And we need to give thanks.

Ephesians 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father

 in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

I love the use of always and all in this verse. We are often told to be careful about using the word “always”, because we use it wrongly, when accusing someone of wrongdoing or complaining about our lot in life. But in this verse, it is imperative that we ALWAYS give thanks and for ALL things. Not just the good things. But ALL things. Ouch. Yes, that’s not so comfortable, giving thanks during trials and for all things. But, it’s not a suggestion, it’s a command.

Our lives are a gracious gift from God’s loving hand, and our hearts should overflow with gratitude to God, each and every day for the bountiful blessings he showers upon us.

So, I’d like to go through these 12 disciplines of a grateful heart, one by one, to help us all gain a better understanding of gratefulness and a heart of gratitude.

Over the next few days or weeks, learn along with me, how to develop a heart of gratitude and a spirit of thanksgiving. I need to be continually reminded to be thankful and I’m sure I’m not the only one. We all live busy lives that can crowd out our offerings of praise to God, but with some serious prayer and determination, with the Lord’s help, we can all become more skilled at giving God the praise and adoration that He deserves so that thankfulness flows naturally from our lips.

“If tomorrow’s supply depended on today’s thanksgiving,

 how much would I have tomorrow?”

Colossians 3:17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed,

 do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, 

giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

To be continued with Discipline no. 1….

“Give thanks as a holy discipline independent of feelings”

A Short Word Study 

2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;

but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

I have always loved this verse as it tells me once again, of God’s love.

God doesn’t give us a spirit of fear. It’s us who bring the fear upon ourselves.

Some time back, I began to investigate the Greek words used in this verse

and jotted down some notes that lay dormant on my desk

for quite some time.

So, if you are not interested in the Greek meaning of

words in the Bible, then stop reading right here or you’ll be

bored to tears. I find it interesting to understand and look into

the meaning of words used in the Bible, as a lot of the time,

they are not at all like we use them in present day language,

and a verse can take on a totally different meaning.

So, in saying that, if you’re still with me, read on.

In looking over the words in this verse in II Timothy,

I found that the word ‘fear’ here, is only used this one time in the Bible.

The Greek word here for fear, is Deilia.

It literally means timidity. So, not a fear of the unknown,

but a lack of courage, or confidence.

The Greek word Deilos, is used 3 times as fearful, having the meaning

of faithless and fainthearted.

Matthew 8:26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful,

O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea;

and there was a great calm.

Mark 4:40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful?

how is it that ye have no faith?

And then we move on to the word Spirit.

This word in the Greek is, Pneuma. Yes, it has to do

with wind and breath but it also has the meaning

in this context of the rational soul and the mental disposition.

Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit:

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

The word power here in II Timothy, is the Greek word

Dunamis. Now of course, straight away, we can hear the

word dynamite in this word. This word means a force,

a miraculous power, might and strength.

Mark 13:26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming

in the clouds with great power and glory.

So, God gives us dynamite power! And dynamite from

God has got to be better than any earthly dynamite out there!

But God not only gives us power, but He gives us love.

Now anyone who has ever done any looking into Greek words

will know about the Greek words for love. And here is this verse,

It is speaking of the Greek word Agape.

Affection. Benevolence. Charity.

The highest form of love. The love that God has for man.

The unconditional love that God has for us.

John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this,

that a man lay down his life for his friends.

Then we move on to a particularly favourite phrase

of mine, a sound mind.

Oh, how I want a sound mind at all times.

The word mind here is sophronismos.

Which literally means discipline and self-control.

It is only used one time in the Bible.

There are other words used meaning being

of a sober mind. But used like it is here in

this verse, as a sound mind, is only found once.

So, in saying all this, I paraphrased this verse

for my own personal understanding and came up with this.

For God hath not given us the mental disposition of timidity and faithlessness,

but of might, strength and force, affection, charity, unconditional love,

self-control and discipline.

So, we have here another promise of God

to hold to in our times of trial.

He has given us power and unconditional love

and a sound mind. God doesn’t give us fear.

Not even a breath of fear.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;

but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Mother's Day 2019

Well, our annual Mother's Day

photo came around all too quickly,

and this year, we were down 

to only 2 girls joining us. 

Wow! Time flies. 

Dave and I are older and greyer

and larger and wiser. Ahem. 

Our family is growing and we

love everyone one of them.

We wished Lauren and Cam could

have been here too. 

 And if someone would have told

us having Grandkids was so much fun,

we would have had them first!! 

And for those of you, like me,

who love black and white photography,

here we are again. 

Blast from the Past

(Okay, so August, 2018)

P.S. The girls are going to kill me 😂

Tea Parties 🍩 

And Painting 🖌

Now, every little girl needs her

very own little tea set. And being

the amazing Grandma that I am, 

Miriam and Lydia now have their

own tea set for many tea parties to come. 

It was only fitting that the Aunties were invited

to Mim's very first tea party. 

And a guest cousin, India. 

Mim had a lot of fun, pouring tea (water)

all over herself, with some actually making

into the tea cup! And when that failed, 

she drank it straight out of the tea pot! 

Like a true Territorian! 

And then of course, painting needs to be

done when making birthday wrapping paper

for Daddy. Beautiful ❤

Cheeky little grins of enjoyment  🙂

And sweet little expressions

(Maddy took these 2 photos)

And of course, some Grandma cuddles

from Lydia. Awwww❤💓

💕Just a Couple More 💕

Dundee Beach Retreat

A few weeks back, I was blessed to 

be able to be one of the speakers at a

Ladies Retreat/Home-schooling Mums

Conference at beautiful Dundee Beach,

4 hours from Katherine. 

The theme of the weekend was this verse

Matthew 11:28

Come unto me, all ye that labour

and are heavy laden,

and I will give you rest. 

It was a blessing to attend my very

first ladies retreat and be asked to speak

and share with the ladies things the Lord has

taught me. 

There were 11 ladies, all in different 

seasons of life, but all like-minded and 

committed to serving and following the

Lord with their whole heart. 

I was able to share a lesson on the importance

of strengthening our relationship with the Lord,

 and the God-ordained order

for our relationships with others. 

God orchestrated things so well, that

all of the speakers' lessons meshed well 

together, despite not having talked to each other

about what we were going to teach on. 

They all connected and built upon the last one,

and this could only be the Lord! Praise God!

It was a blessed time of refreshing and sharing 

our lives and testimonies with each other and getting

to know one another, as most of us had never met before. 

God blessed us with beautiful weather,

and thankfully, cool air con in our cabins

to keep us out of the sticky Territory heat. 

We had a lovely lady from Darwin come and 

do us a high tea, where we all tried to play ladies.

 On the second night, just as we were

planning on having a sharing and singing time

on the beach, the rain came pouring down.

So, changing our plans, we enjoyed the rain

then headed down to the beach to watch the 

most phenomenal sunset ever!

Isn't it interesting how what we take as 

a disappointment, God turns around and blesses

us with a beautiful display of his awesomeness? 

The sunset was so amazing, that we all 

just stood there watching and marvelling

and praising God for his goodness.

 The colours changed with each and 

every minute and the light danced 

across the water, as the waves rolled in and out. 

It was as if the heavens opened and 

God's glory shone down.

And then, as the sun slowly set over the horizon,

we were delighted to watch a long strip of 

light slowly get smaller and smaller,

until the light was gone, and we headed

back up the beach to enjoy more fellowship. 

Psalm 29:3

The voice of the LORD is upon the waters:

the God of glory thundereth: 

the LORD is upon many waters.