.
GRACE, GIFT, and THANKFULNESS are all related words in the Greek.
Grace (charis – intentional generosity), Gift (charisma – an expression of charis), Thankfulness (eucharisma – the response desired by the expression of charis).
We had a very practical discussion of how uncomfortable we can be when being offered a gift…..and why that is.
Maybe we feel we’ll be indebted to the giver of the gift.
Maybe we feel we don’t deserve it.
Maybe we feel the other person is giving out of duty.
Whatever the reason, we talked about how the giver of the gift gets blessed to give.
And how the receiver of the gift can thus facilitate that blessing in the life of the giver…….by receiving the gift!
Thankfulness is the visceral response (it affects you) to the receipt of the gift. Enjoy being graced by the gift!!!
That is what blesses the giver of the gift.
And, thankfulness completes the cycle of grace, not only giving the receiver of the gift the means to himself give, but also opening his heart to receive more.
In Aramaic, “thanksgiving” is literally “receipt of a kindness.”
In the western world, there is a prevailing attitude of “I’m owed” or “I worked for it” or “I have a right to it.”
These are some of the attitudes that make it so difficult to receive gifts.
These are some of the attitudes that make it so difficult to receive anything from God.
Today is called “the age of grace” by the Apostle Paul. (Ephesians 3:2) Today, God wants to pour out everything He can, everything He is, into your heart and life. And today He is able to do this very thing because of the work of His Son, Jesus Christ. Now it remains for us to become good gift receivers!!!! Practice thankfulness and open the door to more of God’s grace in your lives. A thankful person is rich indeed, for he recognizes the truth that everything he has of value….he has received as a gift.
____________________________________
..
The book, Give Me Christ … Revelations of the Glorified Christ is now available on Amazon.
You can subscribe at the upper right of this page by supplying your name and e-mail. You’ll be notified by e-mail whenever a new study is posted, every couple of weeks or so. Your e-mail is not shared with anyone else. After you subscribe, add our address to your contact list, so that the notifications are not sent to your junk folder.
Related studies:
Grace
What is Glory?
Our Inheritance
The Mystery of Christ
The Glorified Christ
Judgment Day – You May be Surprised.
awesome
This is something I think more us, me for sure, need to remind ourselves everyday.
Nice Steve. Good to hear from you. I don’t get to see Sharon much around work, but hope life is good with you and yours.
S
That is so cool, I live in Racine, WI. Jesus has been the best that has ever happened to me. I love him so much. He has been changing my life completely but I still get puffed up sometime acting in vanity and I have asked the good lord to cleanse me from that so I can receive his gifts thankfully and with grace and humility.
Thank you for sharing with me Carin. While you’re waiting for deliverance from pride, keep seeking Christ. In Christ sin can’t stop us from growing up spiritually, closer to the Father in all ways. Pride isn’t powerful enough to overcome the Christ in you, so even when you’re proud, you’ll find, God will STILL talk to you, instruct you and love you. The sins of the world have already been paid for completely by Jesus Christ. I am so happy to know you’re on the spiritual journey into Christ.