ALWAYS REMEMBER TO GIVE THANKS TO GOD

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

1 Be careful to follow every command Iam giving you today, so that you maylive and increase and may enter andpossess the land the Lord promised onoath to your ancestors.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

2 Remember how the Lord your God ledyou all the way in the wilderness theseforty years, to humble and test you inorder to know what was in your heart,whether or not you would keep hiscommands.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

3 He humbled you, causing you tohunger and then feeding you withmanna, which neither you nor yourancestors had known, to teach you thatman does not live on bread alone buton every word that comes from themouth of the Lord.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

4 Your clothes did not wear out and yourfeet did not swell during these fortyyears.

5 Know then in your heart that as a mandisciplines his son, so the Lord your Goddisciplines you.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

6 Observe the commands of the Lordyour God, walking in obedience to himand revering him.

7 For the Lord your God is bringing youinto a good land—a land with brooks,streams, and deep springs gushing outinto the valleys and hills;

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

8 a land with wheat and barley, vinesand fig trees, pomegranates, olive oiland honey;

9 a land where bread will not be scarceand you will lack nothing; a land wherethe rocks are iron and you can digcopper out of the hills.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

10 When you have eaten and aresatisfied, praise the Lord your God forthe good land he has given you.

11 Be careful that you do not forget theLord your God, failing to observe hiscommands, his laws and his decreesthat I am giving you this day.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

12 Otherwise, when you eat and aresatisfied, when you build fine housesand settle down,

13 and when your herds and flocks growlarge and your silver and gold increaseand all you have is multiplied,

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

14 then your heart will become proudand you will forget the Lord your God,who brought you out of Egypt, out ofthe land of slavery.

15 He led you through the vast anddreadful wilderness, that thirsty andwaterless land, with its venomoussnakes and scorpions. He brought youwater out of hard rock.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

16 He gave you manna to eat in thewilderness, something your ancestorshad never known, to humble and testyou so that in the end it might go wellwith you.

17 You may say to yourself, “My powerand the strength of my hands haveproduced this wealth for me.”

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

18 But remember the Lord your God, forit is he who gives you the ability toproduce wealth, and so confirms hiscovenant, which he swore to yourancestors, as it is today.

19 If you ever forget the Lord your Godand follow other gods and worship andbow down to them, I testify against youtoday that you will surely be destroyed.

Deuteronomy 8:1-20

20 Like the nations the Lord destroyedbefore you, so you will be destroyed fornot obeying the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 8:18

18 But remember the Lord you God, forit is He who gives you the ability toproduce wealth, and so confirms Hiscovenant which He swore to yourforefathers as it is today.

It speaks so well of what we all know somewhere in our heart,

but often seem to forget in our actions and our attitudes.

It speaks of how everything we have is a gift from God,

a gift worked upon by our hands, most certainly;

a gift perhaps even enhanced by our own strength,

but a gift nonetheless, for God gives us the hands we need, and God gives us the strength we have.

If I would remember these at all times it would make my life so much easier, and it would bless everyone around

me, and it would bless God..

What do you think would happen if each one of us suddenly became a

more thankful person?

If all of us suddenly became a more appreciative people?

No one likes to be taken for granted or to see someone that they love taking

things for granted.

All of us like to be appreciated,

All of us like to be thanked,and all of us,

I believe, like to see those we love

live thankful lives, appreciative lives, so much so that we teach our children

this virtue

1 Thessalonians 5:18

18 give thanks in all circumstances; forthis is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 5:20

20 "Give thanks to God the Father at alltimes and for everything in the name ofour Lord Jesus Christ."

This is a step beyond remembering God and thanking God for all the wealth that we enjoy in this our

promised land.

This is a step beyond remembering God and obeying his commands

because he has given us fine houses and all our needs.

Luke 17:11-19

11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesustraveled along the border betweenSamaria and Galilee.

12 As he was going into a village, tenmen who had leprosy[a] met him. Theystood at a distance

13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus,Master, have pity on us!”

Luke 17:11-19

14 When he saw them, he said, “Go,show yourselves to the priests.” And asthey went, they were cleansed.

15 One of them, when he saw he washealed, came back, praising God in aloud voice.

16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet andthanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

Luke 17:11-19

17 Jesus asked, “Were not all tencleansed? Where are the other nine?

18 Has no one returned to give praise toGod except this foreigner?”

19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go;your faith has made you well.”

PhiIippians 4:6-7

6 "Do not worry about anything, but ineverything by prayer and supplicationwith thanksgiving let your requests bemade known to God.“

7 And the peace of God, whichtranscends all understanding, will guardyour hearts and your minds in ChristJesus.

Do you have a faith that is thankful in everything?

Giving thanks blesses the person who is thanked and it transforms the

person who gives thanks.

It works the same way everywhere, with everyone, even with God

when we remember..

When we forget,hard things get harder.

God wants us to celebrate his love. God wants us to give thanks in

everything.

God doesn't want this because He is greedy for praise,

the Lord doesn't want it so that He will feel better about

himself,

He wants it because it will bless us and because it will bless the world

He has made.

He wants us to remember what He has done

so that we will not be afraid when we are in need of help,

and so that we will not grow arrogant or rude when we are

prospering.

He wants us to remember and give thanks to Him,

and to those around us so that our lives will be full of light and hope

and so our actions full of tenderness and love.

Why do we give thanks to God?

1) All we have comes from Him

Deuteronomy 8:18

18 But remember the Lord you God, forit is He who gives you the ability toproduce wealth, and so confirms Hiscovenant which He swore to yourforefathers as it is today.

2) It is God’s will for us

1 Thessalonians 5:18

18 give thanks in all circumstances; forthis is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

3) God is expecting from us

Luke 17:17-18

17 Jesus asked, “Were not all tencleansed? Where are the other nine?

18 Has no one returned to give praise toGod except this foreigner?”

4) He commanded us to do

Psalm 100:4

4 Jesus asked, “Were not all tencleansed? Where are the other nine?

18 Has no one returned to give praise toGod except this foreigner?”