Sermonette: The Power of 'Thank You'
#1688s
Ted E. Bowling
Given 07-Jan-23; 18 minutes
summary: Some have declared that the two words "thank you" to be perhaps some of the most powerful words in the language, disarming anger and contempt, increasing healthiness and performance, and allowing one to sleep in restful peace. Though many have been taught to say "thank you" from youth, ingratitude is sharply on the rise, a tool Satan uses to divide mankind. Employees often say they wish they would be more appreciated; employers who realize this deep-felt need get more productivity from their employees. For God's chosen saints, gratitude must be at the core of their emerging character (Colossians 3:12; I Thessalonians 5:11), being thankful to Almighty God and their spiritual siblings constantly, a practice which militates against hatred toward one another. An unthankful person is spiritually flawed (Romans 1:21). As we approach the 31st anniversary of the CGG, we look back on a legacy of messages expressing gratitude, the figurative glue that cements our relationship with God. On this occasion we thank Almighty God for the tireless work for our pastor emeritus, our pastor, our elders, our speakers, our deacons, our board of directors, our transcribers, our webmaster, our sound crew, the members of our church staff, and all the members for their continued loyalty to Almighty God, a task which requires keeping on keeping on!
transcript:
What is the most powerful two-word phrase in the English language? If I were to take a poll, I'll get many different answers. Possibly love you. Or I'm sorry. And both of those are quite significant. But the two most impactful two-word phrase that you could ever say in my opinion is thank you. It is a phrase that can be utilized in almost every interaction, both personal and impersonal. It is a phrase that is advantageous to both the parties most of the time. It is a phrase that can strengthen and uplift a person. Especially one who is struggling. And you can also disarm the angry. An earnest heartfelt thank you to melt the hardest of hearts. Researchers have found that saying thank you can yield big rewards for our spiritual health and for our physical health. Both words have power to transform our health, to increase happiness, performance, and success. Researchers tell us that a grateful person is happier and more likely to maintain good friendships. It reduces stress, improves our sleep, and floods our bodies with endorphins that energize us instead of the hormones that leave us drained and depleted. Now I'm sure that we have all been taught from a very young age to say thank you. But oftentimes when we are young, we really do not understand the significance of that phrase. And in today's fast-paced world, ingratitude is on the rise. And ingratitude, whether passive or active, is a tool that Satan uses to divide us. This is the reason why I believe there is so much anger and grief in the world. People do not feel appreciated, affirmed, or celebrated. And the two words thank you can do so much to change that outlook. How many cases of road rage could be prevented with simple politeness? Letting another driver in line and when they do receiving a grateful wave of thank you in return, it does have impact. And also it would probably make that drive home a lot more peaceful. During this study, I heard a term or read a term that never heard before. The gratitude gap is a term which means happy, which happens when we do not express gratitude as much as we should, diminishing the power effect that it has on others, both for the giver and the receiver. In one study researchers learned that at the workplace, employees consistently said they wish they were more appreciated and it was disheartening to realize how seldom they heard the words thank you. It's very uncommon in our work, our American workplace. Hearing thank you is a special, special because it is a way of making that employee or co-worker feel valued. Researchers say that employers and managers who remember to say thank you, they often find that they get more productivity out of those employees. And successful leaders know that saying thank you is not a sign of weakness or insecurity, but an expression of personal confidence. As Christians, gratitude must be at the core of a converted disciple of Jesus Christ. Please turn to Colossians 3 verse 12. Colossians 3:12-15 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long suffering, bearing with one another and forgiving one another. If anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. And above all things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you are called into one body and be thankful. The heading of my Bible in this section says character of the new man. These scriptures are to be a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming. They are a blueprint of the life that we should be developing in our Christian life, so that we will be like Jesus Christ because this is the way He is and the Father. Many times a genuine thank you is a reflection of kindness, humility, meekness, long suffering depending on the circumstances. In I Thessalonians 5:11 says therefore comfort each other and edify one another just as you are doing. We are to edify each other. And sometimes this could be done simply by the uh, act of gratitude by saying thank you. I Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore comfort each other and edify one another just as you are doing. In II Thessalonians 2 and verse 13, it says, but we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brothers beloved of the Lord because God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation, through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. I like a statement that Martin Collins made regarding this verse. II Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brothers beloved of the Lord because God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation, through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. Martin said, through the apostle Paul's example, we see that it is our duty to be thankful for each other on a constant basis. It is difficult to be upset with someone at the same time you're thanking God that he is your brother in Christ. I thought it's an interesting and excellent statement. It's very difficult to be mad at somebody when you're thankful for. We have a duty to be thankful. We have a duty to be thankful for each other, to be strong for each other, and that means comforting for the faint-hearted, upholding the weak, and being patient with everyone. And most importantly, giving thanks to Almighty God. In Colossians 3:17 it says, and whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Our gratitude must begin by giving thanks to God. Colossians 3:17 And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. For He is the giver of everything. And never, never take anything for granted. We must thank God. We must be thanking God all the time. And should never be far from our thoughts. Thanking God that He is God. Thankful for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and for our calling into His body, into His family. There is no doubt that thankfulness, appreciation, and gratitude means a great deal to God the Father and Jesus Christ. We know how we feel when someone gives us a nice thank you. Not necessarily for any special reason or occasion. But we really do appreciate it. And I believe the Father and Jesus Christ are very much the same. They appreciate when we raise up our prayers of thankfulness to Him. We do live in an unthankful world. We live in a nation that takes many of God's blessings for granted. Never considering all of the sacrifices that have been made to produce them. How important is being thankful? Romans 1:21 says for although they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give Him thanks or give thanks to Him. But they became futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened. Remember, Paul is speaking directly to you and me. Romans 1:21 For although they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give Him thanks or give thanks to Him. But they became futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened. Unthankfulness is included in the list of evil attributes in II Timothy 3 that we must overcome. An unthankful person at the very core is flawed. Why? Because of self-centeredness, idolatry. When we become ungrateful we dishonor God. When we begin to neglect to be thankful we will begin to change. Our hearts we become hard and selfish. We will fail to appreciate others, especially those that we are closest to. But we are not thankful for what we have been given. Soon we will start taking our blessings for granted. An unwillingness to thank God for His great mercy and for all the other things He provides. We will alienate ourselves from Him. So brethren, keep your hearts hung guard against ingratitude. A sermon by John Reid titled Be You Thankful. He has a quote that I really like, especially the last sentence. I'm going to read it now, quote. We can be working to obey God, we can be blessed by God, and we can be, and we can approve of God's laws and actions. But if we are not praising and thanking Him an important aspect of our development in becoming part of the God's family is missing. Gratitude is the glue in a sense that cements our relationship with God, end quote. I really like that sentence. Being thankful to God and for each other is like a glue that cements us together. I started preparing this sermon a few weeks ago. And I did not know I was going to be speaking today. And in the course of that study and preparation, I Googled the in our website thank you. And I came across a sermonette by John Ritenbaugh, given back in 2003 on January 11th. January 11th is the anniversary of the church. And it is titled CGG Anniversary, Summary and Thank you. And in that sermonette John spoke about the humble beginnings of Church of the Great God, where they met in Anaheim. And I think John Reid's home with less than 20 people there in attendance. But he talked about how he was called to be a pastor and that he was working to do his duty in the job that God had called him into doing. And in that sermonette, he thanked you for being faithful to God. And then again, in the 19th anniversary of the church on January 11, 2008 John gave the commentary. It was titled Anniversary Message, a thank you. John said I want to thank you for your loyalty to God, not to me nor to CGG but to God. And John was exactly right. It is our loyalty to God. But you are here today. Now every year at the feast, at the end of the feast, John or Richard always took the time to stop and thank all those that worked to make contributions to the feast. Yes, in a few days, it will be the 31st anniversary of Church of the Great God. And so I want to stop and say, thank you. First, thank you to the Almighty God that You are God. But Jesus Christ, it's Your right hand, our Savior. For watching over us and blessing this church. I want to thank John Ritenbaugh, who has been our loyal example. An example of honor and loyalty through all these years. Who worked tirelessly as our pastor and leader for nearly 30 years. I want to say thank you. We have office staff here. I wanna say thank you to Christy Collins and Joe Beatty. They work tirelessly here. And also our technical advisor. They're in the back of the sound and over our video. Thank you to our transcribers. They work behind the scenes, our proofreaders. They get little appreciation, but thank you to you. Thank you to the sound crew, Dana Fletcher, Robert Richter. I personally, truly thank you for the work that you do. To David Grabbe, our computer genius who works on writing code so that we will have a website, the Berean, and so much more. It would take me a while to, to go through all the things that he does provide, but thank you so much. To our song leaders. To all the men who give sermons and sermonettes. Thank you to all of our deacons that work to serve the congregation, Kim Myers, James Beaubelle, Bill Onisick, thank you. And not to forget Sharon Onisick, our deaconess. And then our elders: Mark Schindler in Tinley Park. Mark works hard to serve that congregation in the Midwest, also giving sermons. But Mark also is on the front line of answering the questions that come into the church. And I know that job can be very, very, very challenging. And so I wanna say thank you, Mark, for all that you do and for me personally. Martin Collins works here at the office. He is our church business manager and treasurer. All the ministerial duties that he performs, writing and speaking. By the way, there is a long list of other titles that he has, but I do not think there is enough time in this sermon to, to go over them, but thank you, Martin. And to our pastor Richard Ritenbaugh assume the duties a pastor of CGG in 2021 when his father his father's health went into decline. I do not know how difficult that was for you. But I thank you for the example and the leadership that you are providing for each and every one of us. And it makes the term the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, a fact. Thank you. And to all the brethren, I will repeat what John said in his sermonette. Thank you for your loyalty to God, not just to CGG, but to God. And I will end this sermonette with the last words that John gave in his 2003 sermonette. John said, regardless of what happens, we are here by faith. Hold on to what we have and at the same time keep on keeping on.
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