I Corinthians 15:57: "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." Today, Pastor spoke about being faithful in giving thanks.
In I Kings 21:1-29, we have the story of King Ahab of Israel desiring Naboth's vineyard. He offers to give Naboth another vineyard or pay him. Naboth refuses his offer based on God's rules concerning inheritance.
This doesn't sit well with the king, who goes home to sulk. Here he has a palace and everything he could ever want, but he's upset because he can't have this parcel of land. As he dwells on the issue, Satan is plowing and planting bad seed into Ahab's life.
Along comes his wife, Jezebel, who tells him to cheer up. She'll get that vineyard for him. She frames innocent Naboth for blasphemy, and he is stoned. Ahab goes to take possession of the vineyard.
Along comes Elisha, the prophet, with a message from God. These terrible actions will have equally terrible consequences for Ahab and his household. He repents, and the Lord tells him disaster will not visit his generation but the next. According to scripture, he got a 3-year reprieve. So, he went through a sequence of plowing, seeding, reaping, and threshing. Evil results in death.
If Ahab had stayed thankful instead of sorrowful and filled with self-pity, he would not have gotten into trouble. Stay away from thoughts like:
I don't deserve this.
I deserve better.
I need this to make me happy.
Thinking we deserve or don't deserve something cuts us off from God's grace (unmerited favor) and leads to seeking satisfaction through illegitimate means. A heart of gratitude for what we have brings true happiness.
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