NOTES: Choose Gratitude, Part 2

Defiant: Choose Gratitude—week 2: A Beautiful Exchange

Date: Sunday November 12, 2023

Text: Psalm 100

Psalm 100:1–5 (ESV) 1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5 For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”

Let’s Connect:

Not only is gratitude the gate of decision, but also the gate of exchange:

Interesting brain science and the power of gratitude:

Text Explained:

Ps. 100:1-3 1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

The exchange: noise, sadness, distance from God

A good example of this exchange in Nehemiah:

Nehemiah 8:9–10 (ESV) 9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law.

2 Corinthians 7:10 (ESV) 10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.

Nehemiah directs them to end the weeping; exchange their sorrow for joy. Reason?

The difference between godly grief and worldly grief is that the first ends in repentance while the later ends with regret.

10 Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

This is the joy God gives his people that we might know Him and anticipate being with Him forever.

1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!

Let’s Relate:

How do we make this exchange when our mind is stuck in sorrow?

Philippians 4:4–8 (ESV) “4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Use gratitude as the activity of the mind that intentionally exchanges sorrow for joy; the past with our present reality in Christ; brokenness and pain for the goodness of God.

“How can we live a truly grateful life? When we look back at all that has happened to us, we easily divide our lives into good things to be grateful for and bad things to forget. But with a past thus divided, we cannot move freely into the future. With many things to forget we an only limp towards the future. True spiritual gratitude embraces all of our past, the good as well as the bad events, the joyful as well as the sorrowful moments. From the place where we stand, everything that took place brought us to this place, and we want to remember all of it as part of God’s guidance. That does not mean that all that happened in the past was good, but it does mean that even the bad didn’t happen outside the loving presence of God…Once all of our past is remembered in gratitude, we are free to be sent into the world to proclaim good news to others.” —Henri Nouwen

Our Challenge:

Make the exchange: 3 things you’re grateful for (different and specific), each day for the rest of the month