Uplifting Gratitude- the Attitude of the Great

UV 2300/10000 Uplifting Gratitude-the Attitude of the Great
Then went king David in, and sat before the LORD, and he said, Who am I, O Lord GOD? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?
2 Samuel 7 v 18

When we remember our humble beginnings often, and remember how the Lord has led us, lifted us, saved us, we will not end up thinking that we are “self made” people who owe nothing to nobody. We should emulate King David who remembered how he started as a shepherd looking after his father’s sheep- a mere lad whose brothers or even father did not take too seriously. But step by step, the Lord raised him up to be first a champion challenger of Israel who defeated the champion giant Goliath whom nobody had defeated till then. Then, he raised him up to be the son-in-law to the king Saul. Finally, He made him heir and successor to Saul and thereafter, one of the greatest kings of Israel. He made him a forebear of the Messiah King of Kings- Jesus. Consciousness of his eternal debt to the Lord caused David to always be outpouring thanksgiving, praise and worship not out of a sense of obligation but out of a heart of love. This is the reason, the Lord commended him to have a heart after his own despite his apparent sin of adultery and murder in the issue of Bathsheba.

We need to think, “ What is man that the Lord sends His own Son to die as a payment for us? What am I that He has paid such a heavy price to redeem me?” None of us were high born or born with a silver spoon in our mouth. The Lord blessed us and increased us, measure by measure to make us who we are today. There is nothing in our family or background to make us feel entitled to whatever we are enjoying today. We were not deserving of the grace and mercy of the Lord shown to us in so many different ways. Having brought us this far, our faith and hope should be such that we know that the Lord will lead us the rest of the way.

The foundation of King David ‘s greatness as a king as well as a spiritual leader lay in his gratitude and thanksgiving to the Lord. He never forgot for a moment who he was essentially. His heart sought the greatness of the Lord. We too should know that we owe our every breath to the Lord. The promises of the Lord are what gave us hope in our difficult times. These were like life-saving ropes thrown down to us to lift us out of the pit of our misery, poverty and suffering even as Joseph was lifted out of the pit in order to pave the way to the cockpit of Egypt. It is not our ability, our talent, our hard work, our influence, our personality or character that has brought us innumerable blessings. Like David, we should not hesitate to acknowledge the hand of the Lord that has blessed, lifted, strengthened, protected and provided for us in all types of predicaments and situations. It is this kind of humility that precedes further grace being poured upon us and honour, riches and wisdom being conferred on us both in this world and the next.
Prateep V Philip