Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC202412S
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00:05 >> Welcome to It Is Written
00:06 Canada. 00:07 Thank you for joining me. 00:08 At sea in a dense fog is how 00:09 At sea in a dense fog is how 00:11 Helen Keller described her life 00:13 after losing her eyesight 00:15 and her hearing at the age of 19 00:17 and her hearing at the age of 19 00:18 months, permanently blind and 00:19 deaf for the rest of her life. 00:21 And yet she could say... 00:32 You see, gratitude is a choice, 00:34 and it's an antidote to negative 00:37 self-talk. 00:39 Let me quickly tell you a 00:41 personal story about how 00:42 gratitude blessed one 00:44 of our days. 00:45 Our early morning run 00:48 Our early morning run 00:48 where René and I went out, we 00:50 were running along. 00:51 We saw some workmen on the side 00:52 of the road and we stopped and 00:53 we looked at what they were 00:55 doing, and then I said, 00:55 doing, and then I said, 00:56 "Hey guys, I just want to thank 00:58 you for all your hard work." 01:03 So they looked up in disbelief. 01:06 "You men are improving our 01:07 neighbourhood and we stopped to 01:09 express our gratitude," I said. 01:11 They just stood there staring, 01:14 mouths gaping, "Huh? Wha... 01:17 Wait, what?" 01:19 And then their supervisor, he 01:21 walked over and he asked, 01:23 "W-what's going on?" 01:23 "W-what's going on?" 01:25 And I said, "Well, we just 01:26 noticed how hard you and your 01:28 crew are working and we stopped 01:30 to say thank you for all your 01:32 hard work." 01:33 Another shocked face. 01:34 Another shocked face. 01:35 And then it finally sunk in that 01:38 we were serious. 01:39 We were not joking. 01:40 And each of those men 01:42 began to smile. 01:45 Do you realize that no one 01:47 ever thanks us? 01:50 Their supervisor opened his 01:52 heart to us. 01:53 "Most people are usually angry 01:55 with us for tearing up the 01:57 ground in front of their houses. 01:59 They don't understand that we 02:01 are improving their lives, 02:03 making their neighbourhood 02:04 safer. 02:06 Thank you for saying thank you." 02:09 "You're so very welcome," René 02:11 and I smiled and then we 02:12 continued our run, hearing their 02:13 continued our run, hearing their 02:14 surprised voices chattering 02:16 behind us. 02:17 "Wow! Can you believe that? 02:20 That couple really made my day!" 02:23 To tell you the truth, 02:25 our simple expression of 02:26 gratitude made our day, too. 02:29 Countless scientific studies 02:30 prove that gratitude, 02:32 just saying thanks, 02:34 really is good for you. 02:38 Whenever you express gratitude, 02:40 it reduces depression, increases 02:42 resilience, lessens anxiety, 02:45 reduces the risk of heart 02:46 disease, relieves stress, 02:48 improves sleep. 02:49 And get this, the expression of 02:52 gratitude is a powerful tool 02:55 for relational development 02:56 and marriage enrichment. 02:58 But you might be wondering, 03:00 what if you are going through 03:02 a very dark moment in your life, 03:04 how then can you give thanks? 03:08 How could the angels sing 03:10 praises when God's only Son 03:13 came into a world 03:15 that was hell bent on rejecting 03:17 Him right from the day 03:19 of His birth? 03:21 [theme music playing] 03:24 ♪♪ 03:58 [placid music playing] 04:01 ♪♪ 04:07 Recently, a friend asked this 04:09 question. 04:10 "So let's just think for a 04:12 moment," he said, "I want you 04:14 to imagine a hypothetical 04:15 situation. 04:16 If I was to challenge you 04:19 to live one day without the 04:21 benefits of anyone else's effort 04:23 in your life, just one day, 04:26 what would that day look like?" 04:28 It's a pretty good question, 04:29 isn't it? 04:31 You live one day 04:33 without the benefit of anyone 04:35 else's effort in your life. 04:37 So here's what that day 04:40 would look like. 04:41 For starters, when you got out 04:43 of bed in the morning, 04:44 you would have nothing to wear, 04:46 nothing to wear. 04:48 So that is unless you make 04:50 all your own clothing and 04:52 manufacture the cloth and the 04:53 manufacture the cloth and the 04:54 machinery to create the 04:56 materials and the patterns, 04:58 and you also style and stitch 05:00 the materials together. 05:00 the materials together. 05:01 Chances are that almost none of 05:03 us would qualify for that. 05:06 And so you wake up 05:09 with nothing on. 05:11 And you would have 05:12 no place to go and 05:14 no way of getting there. 05:16 There would be no roads, 05:17 no trains, no boats, no planes. 05:21 There would be no books to read, 05:23 and there would be no computers 05:25 or smartphones. 05:26 There would be no buildings. 05:30 So you would have to spend that 05:32 day if you set your mind 05:35 to just one day experiencing 05:37 life, benefiting only from your 05:39 own efforts, you would have to 05:41 spend that day extracting 05:44 the natural resources, crafting 05:46 the tools, you would have to 05:48 create your own paths, 05:50 pave your own roads, manufacture 05:51 pave your own roads, manufacture 05:53 every tool. 05:55 You would have to grow 05:56 every item of food. 05:59 There is nothing 06:00 that you or I can do 06:01 that you or I can do 06:02 at any point in our lives 06:05 that is not benefiting from 06:06 someone else's effort, 06:08 from someone else's contribution 06:10 to your life, to my life, 06:12 whether you see it or whether 06:14 you don't, whether I'm thinking 06:16 of it or whether I'm not. 06:19 And ultimately, the Bible 06:21 declares that it all comes 06:23 from the Lord. 06:25 God's word asks this 06:27 challenging question... 06:29 ...what do you have 06:31 that God hasn't given you? 06:41 The Bible reveals that... 06:46 Expressing gratitude is 06:48 good for you. 06:50 Gratitude really is an 06:51 expression of love. 06:53 So here's where I wanna 06:55 challenge you to do 06:57 something, this day, as soon as 07:00 this program is over. 07:02 So think of someone 07:04 that you are thankful for. 07:05 Think of that person right now. 07:06 Think of that person right now. 07:07 Before the end of today, send 07:09 that person a text or 07:12 speak to them in person or 07:14 on the phone and tell them 07:16 that you are thankful for them. 07:19 Thankful for that person that 07:20 you're thinking of. 07:21 So without the benefit of other 07:24 people's efforts in your life, 07:25 people's efforts in your life, 07:27 you wouldn't even have a bed to 07:28 get out of unless you 07:30 manufacture the mattress and all 07:32 the materials and the sheets and 07:34 the blankets that are part of 07:36 your bed. 07:38 There would be no carpet 07:41 or no tiles on the floor 07:43 when you woke up, and probably 07:45 no house unless you built 07:48 the entire house and 07:49 manufactured all the materials 07:50 yourself. 07:53 There is practically nothing 07:54 that you or I can do at any 07:57 point that is not benefiting 08:00 from someone else's effort, 08:02 from someone else's contribution 08:04 to your life. 08:06 Whether you see it 08:07 or think about it 08:09 or not. 08:11 That thought should produce a 08:13 degree of humility within 08:15 all of us. 08:17 So here's one way of thinking 08:19 about this. 08:20 There is an inverse relationship 08:23 between pride and gratitude, 08:25 because only when I realized 08:27 that every pursuit in my life 08:29 comes with the benefit of 08:31 someone else's effort, 08:33 can I really feel like 08:36 it's not all about me. 08:39 But if I feel like 08:41 I am all that because of 08:43 my cleverness, because of my 08:45 earning potential, or because of 08:47 my talent, because of my money, 08:48 because of my whatever, 08:51 then it's oh so easy to overlook 08:53 the fact that I benefit and you 08:55 benefit from everyone else's 08:58 effort in our lives. 09:00 In this sense, gratitude is the 09:02 great antidote to pride. 09:05 There's a church that is 09:06 mentioned in the Book of 09:07 Revelation, the last book in the 09:09 Bible, and it's a very 09:10 proud church. 09:12 It's called the Church of 09:13 Laodicea. 09:15 This church is the last of the 09:17 seven churches. 09:18 The condition of the Laodicean 09:19 church is the condition of the 09:21 Christian church in the last 09:23 days, just before Jesus returns. 09:27 So Jesus gives His assessment 09:30 of this last day church, this 09:31 Laodicean church. 09:32 He defines it as a 09:35 self-satisfied church. 09:36 He says, "I know your deeds, 09:38 that you are neither hot 09:40 nor cold." 09:42 Jesus has been examining 09:44 this church. 09:45 He knows their true condition. 09:47 He says... 10:04 Jesus is saying, "You make Me 10:05 sick." 10:14 So think about the─ 10:16 this last day church, 10:17 the Laodicean Church. 10:19 Who do they depend on? 10:22 Themselves. 10:23 No one else. 10:24 No one else, themselves only. 10:27 They are self-sufficient 10:28 self-made men, self-made women. 10:32 And of course, we already know 10:35 that that is not possible. 10:37 No one lives without the 10:39 benefits of someone else's 10:40 efforts blessing their lives. 10:44 But they say... 10:58 God is here identifying 11:00 ingratitude as being a sin that 11:03 is Laodicean in nature. 11:06 Only a selfish, thankless 11:08 and ungrateful person 11:11 says or thinks, "I am wealthy, 11:13 says or thinks, "I am wealthy, 11:14 a self-made man or a self-made 11:16 woman. 11:17 My entire world is a product of 11:19 my own efforts only. 11:21 I have earned it by my own 11:23 hard work, my own talent, 11:25 my own ingenuity. 11:27 I need to thank no one 11:30 for what I have or for the life 11:32 that I live." 11:34 Let's take a look at 11:35 Let's take a look at 11:36 the Bible. 11:37 In Luke chapter 17 11:39 from verse 11 to verse 19. 11:42 So this is the passage where 11:44 Doctor Luke tells the story of 11:46 the ten lepers who came to Jesus 11:48 for healing. 11:50 So there are some things 11:52 that we need to notice about 11:55 who this group is. 11:58 It is a group of 11:59 how many people? 12:01 Ten. 12:02 And what is the makeup 12:04 of this group, the demographic 12:06 composition of this group 12:07 of ten? 12:09 There is one Samaritan, 12:11 nine Jews, nine of the 12:14 promised chosen people, nine 12:16 believers and one stranger, one 12:18 nonbeliever or foreigner. 12:20 And when Jesus healed all ten 12:23 lepers, how many returned 12:25 to thank Him? 12:27 Only one. 12:29 And which one? 12:30 The Samaritan nonbeliever. 12:32 The Bible says he fell down 12:35 on his face 12:36 at His feet. 12:38 And here's the three operative 12:39 words: giving Him 12:42 thanks. 12:43 Those are important words, 12:45 giving Him thanks. 12:46 And then Jesus asked... 12:57 So giving glory to God is when 12:59 you put the spotlight on God. 13:02 And Jesus says giving Him thanks 13:05 is putting the spotlight on God, 13:08 it is giving glory to God. 13:09 "Has no one come to give glory 13:11 to God except this foreigner?" 13:13 And Jesus said to the man, 13:16 "Stand up and go, 13:19 your faith has healed you." 13:21 So gratitude is an expression 13:23 of faith. 13:25 Let's go a little deeper 13:26 with that. 13:27 Gratitude is living by faith. 13:30 Psalm 100, verse 4 tells us 13:33 how to live by faith, how to 13:35 worship God. 13:36 It says... 13:45 Whenever you pray, 13:47 start with thanking God. 13:49 Thank Him, thank Him. 13:51 Think about all the things to 13:52 thank Him for and praise Him. 13:55 And that will change you, 13:56 guaranteed. 13:58 Whenever you express gratitude, 14:00 it changes you. 14:01 It changes your mindset, it 14:03 reduces depression, it increases 14:06 resilience, it lessens anxiety, 14:08 it relieves stress. 14:09 Your grumpy self dies 14:10 Your grumpy self dies 14:12 and you are set free 14:14 to be happy. 14:17 Professor Shawn Achor, Harvard 14:18 professor known for his research 14:20 in happiness and the writer of a 14:23 very good book, I recommend to 14:25 you, The Happiness Advantage, 14:27 he has determined that gratitude 14:29 is the single greatest 14:30 influencing factor in happiness. 14:33 In another book, 14:34 The Ministry of Healing, 14:36 we find support 14:38 for Shawn Achor's finding. 14:40 It says... 14:49 The nine healed lepers, 14:51 these nine men who did 14:54 not give thanks, 14:56 they were the promised 14:59 chosen believers in God, 15:02 but they had a 100% 15:04 failure rate when it came to 15:06 expressing their gratitude. 15:09 I see this as a warning 15:11 to us as believers, 15:13 that whoever forgets to thank 15:15 God fails to appreciate 15:17 what God does for them 15:19 and is in grave danger 15:21 of forgetting, forgetting God 15:24 all together. 15:25 Because gratitude is 15:27 an expression of our faith. 15:29 In fact, saying thank you to God 15:32 is living by faith, and living 15:35 by faith is an expression 15:37 of dependence on God. 15:39 Whenever you say thank you to 15:40 God for whatever 15:43 you have or whatever you do, 15:45 or whatever righteous acts 15:47 you perform, 15:48 you are automatically 15:49 acknowledging that everything in 15:51 your life, your blessings, your 15:54 good deeds, your righteous acts, 15:56 are a gift from God, 15:58 not from yourself. 16:01 Gratitude actually safeguards 16:03 and strengthens the experience 16:05 of righteousness by faith. 16:07 Because gratitude enables 16:09 self-transcendence. 16:12 And the reverse is also true. 16:15 The first step away from God 16:18 is to be ungrateful. 16:19 Ingratitude erodes 16:22 faith in God. 16:24 So Paul, in the book of Romans 16:26 in the Bible, he writes... 16:56 So Paul is saying that 16:57 ingratitude leads to idolatry 17:00 and the corruption of 17:01 your faith. 17:02 Unwillingness to give thanks to 17:04 God for His love and His 17:06 goodness hardens the heart 17:09 and leads men to forget 17:11 the being to whom 17:13 they are unwilling to express 17:14 thankfulness. 17:16 To counteract this danger, Paul 17:18 encourages you and he encourages 17:20 me with these words... 17:30 But you say, "Pastor... 17:32 ...you don't know my 17:33 circumstances." 17:35 That's true. 17:36 I may not know you, but I know 17:38 that most people have been 17:40 through some very, very 17:41 dark moments. 17:43 Jesus Himself went through some 17:44 very dark moments, and maybe you 17:47 have some very dark moments 17:49 in your past. 17:50 You might be in a dark moment 17:51 You might be in a dark moment 17:52 right now. 17:53 The biblical exhortation is give 17:55 thanks in all circumstances. 17:57 And it's tempting to say, 17:59 "Not in my circumstances, 18:01 because my circumstance 18:04 is a little bit different. 18:06 It's a little darker, it's a 18:07 little deeper." 18:09 I'd like to challenge that 18:10 thinking. 18:11 If you don't know the story, 18:12 I'll tell it to you briefly. 18:14 In World War II, Corrie 18:15 ten Boom, she and her sister 18:17 Betsie were held in a flea 18:19 ridden concentration camp 18:21 in Germany. 18:22 Corrie's sister Betsie preached 18:25 this verse, “Give thanks in all 18:27 circumstances,” and Corrie was 18:29 so angry. 18:31 "You cannot give thanks in these 18:32 "You cannot give thanks in these 18:33 flea infested barracks. 18:35 There's nothing to be 18:36 thankful for. 18:38 Betsie, just be quiet." 18:40 And Betsie said, "Corrie, 18:42 you have to! 18:44 The Bible says, 'Give thanks in 18:46 all circumstances.'" 18:48 It's unlikely that any of us 18:50 have spent any time in a German 18:52 concentration camp. 18:54 Corrie begrudgingly 18:56 said okay and she joined her 18:58 sister and she thanked God 19:01 for the fleas 19:03 in the dormitory barracks. 19:06 And it was after a few days 19:08 that they overheard the German 19:10 guards complaining 19:12 that they would not enter those 19:15 barracks because of 19:16 the fleas, 19:18 because they did not want to be 19:20 exposed to the fleas. 19:23 So even the fleas in that 19:24 setting were a blessing 19:26 that were a protection for 19:28 Corrie and Betsie's safety. 19:31 Because the German guards would 19:33 not have their way with them 19:34 because the fleas were a barrier 19:37 to the assaults. 19:39 Gratitude really is 19:41 a spiritual discipline 19:42 that we can practice 19:44 in all circumstances. 19:47 There is a certain song in our 19:49 hymnal that is entitled, "Now 19:52 Thank We All Our God." 19:53 It was written around 19:54 1636 19:57 by a Lutheran pastor by the name 19:59 of Martin Rinkart, 20:01 who came from Eilenberg, 20:04 Germany at a─ at the beginning 20:06 of the 30 Years War. 20:08 So this was one of the most 20:10 destructive conflicts in 20:12 European history. 20:14 An estimated 8 million soldiers 20:16 and civilians died from 20:18 the effects of the battle, the 20:20 famine, the disease. 20:21 While parts of Germany reported 20:23 population declines of over 50%. 20:26 Can you imagine that? 20:28 So this walled city of 20:29 Eilenberg, where Martin lived, 20:31 became the refuge for political 20:33 and military fugitives. 20:35 But the result was overcrowding, 20:38 deadly pestilence, and famine. 20:40 The home of Pastor Martin 20:42 Rinkart was a sanctuary 20:44 for the victims, even though 20:47 he was often hard pressed 20:50 to provide for his own family. 20:53 Martin would give away 20:54 his own food. 20:56 During the height of 20:58 this severe famine, 21:01 Martin was the only surviving 21:03 pastor in Eilenberg, conducting 21:05 as many as 50 21:08 funerals in one day. 21:10 He performed more than 4000 21:12 funerals in a year, 21:14 an average of 80 funerals 21:16 a week, including that of his... 21:20 ...two closest friends in 21:21 ministry and his own wife. 21:23 And that's when Martin 21:25 wrote the words of this hymn. 21:25 wrote the words of this hymn. 21:27 "Now thank we all our God 21:29 with heart and hands and voices, 21:32 who wondrous things hath done, 21:33 who wondrous things hath done, 21:34 in whom this world rejoices." 21:38 I don't know, but you may be 21:39 going through a very dark valley 21:42 right now. 21:44 But there is never a valley too 21:45 dark to eliminate gratitude 21:48 from the believer's life. 21:50 Turn with me in your Bibles and 21:52 look in Isaiah chapter 25. 21:55 And there we see these words, 21:58 "And it shall be said in that 22:00 day," and it's talking about 22:01 when Jesus comes... 22:10 When Jesus came to this world, 22:12 He was rejected and yet 22:14 He lived in this world 22:16 beholding His father. 22:17 And we should live as Jesus no 22:20 matter the rejection, no matter 22:21 how dark the valley, Jesus is 22:24 with us and we can look up 22:26 and say, "Behold our God. 22:29 Nothing can compare to Him." 22:32 [orchestral music intro] 22:35 ♪♪ 22:39 ♪ Who has held ♪ 22:42 ♪ the oceans in His hands ♪ 22:47 ♪ Who has numbered ♪ 22:50 ♪ every grain of sand ♪ 22:54 ♪ Kings and nations ♪ 22:58 ♪ tremble at His voice ♪ 23:01 ♪ All creation ♪ 23:05 ♪ rises to rejoice ♪ 23:10 ♪ Behold our God ♪ 23:15 ♪ seated on His throne ♪ 23:19 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 23:23 ♪ Behold our king ♪ 23:29 ♪ nothing can compare ♪ 23:32 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 23:40 [orchestral interlude] 23:43 ♪♪ 23:50 ♪ Who has given ♪ 23:53 ♪ counsel to the Lord ♪ 23:56 ♪ Who can question ♪ 23:59 ♪ any of His words ♪ 24:02 ♪ Who can teach ♪ 24:05 ♪ the one who knows all things ♪ 24:09 ♪ Who can fathom ♪ 24:12 ♪ all His wondrous deeds ♪ 24:16 ♪ Behold our God ♪ 24:21 ♪ seated on His throne ♪ 24:24 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 24:29 ♪ Behold our king ♪ 24:34 ♪ nothing can compare ♪ 24:37 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 24:42 ♪ Come, adore Him ♪ 24:46 ♪ Adore Him ♪ 24:49 ♪ Adore Him ♪ 24:54 ♪ Who has felt ♪ 24:56 ♪ the nails upon His hands ♪ 25:01 ♪ Bearing all the ♪ 25:04 ♪ guilt of sinful man ♪ 25:07 ♪ God eternal ♪ 25:10 ♪ humbled to the grave ♪ 25:14 ♪ Jesus, Saviour ♪ 25:17 ♪ risen now to reign ♪ 25:21 ♪ Behold our God ♪ 25:26 ♪ seated on His throne ♪ 25:29 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 25:34 ♪ Behold our king ♪ 25:39 ♪ nothing can compare ♪ 25:42 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 25:46 ♪ Behold our God ♪ 25:51 ♪ seated on His throne ♪ 25:54 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 25:58 ♪ Behold our king ♪ 26:03 ♪ nothing can compare ♪ 26:06 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 26:22 >> Praise God, don't we have so 26:24 much to be thankful for? 26:26 When you behold the goodness of 26:28 God, nothing can compare. 26:31 Come, let us adore Him. 26:33 Give Him our heart, give Him 26:36 our gratitude and our praise. 26:40 Friends, both science and the 26:42 Bible reveal the extraordinary 26:44 benefits of gratitude. 26:46 It costs nothing. 26:48 Anyone can do it. 26:50 And the upside is 26:52 enormous. 26:53 Today, our free offer, 26:55 The Blessings of Gratitude. 26:57 You can find out 26:59 how to develop 27:01 a habit of thankfulness 27:03 and how your life will change 27:06 as a result. 27:07 These simple principles can have 27:10 an enormous impact on your life 27:12 and on the lives of others. 27:16 Before you go, I would like to 27:18 thank all of you who have 27:20 supported the ministry of 27:21 It Is Written Canada with your 27:22 prayers and financial 27:23 contributions. 27:24 Without your support, this 27:25 television ministry could not 27:27 have reached so many people 27:29 for so many decades. 27:32 Let me also invite you 27:34 to follow us on Instagram and 27:36 Facebook, and subscribe to our 27:38 YouTube channel, and also listen 27:40 to our podcasts. 27:42 And if you go to our website, 27:43 you can see our latest programs. 27:47 Friends, if you want to discover 27:49 how to live like Jesus with a 27:52 heart filled to overflowing with 27:54 gratitude to God, I recommend 27:57 that you daily 27:58 open this book, 28:00 the world's number one 28:01 bestselling book of all time, 28:03 the Bible, where it is recorded 28:05 that Jesus Himself declared... 28:20 ♪ ...our King ♪ 28:22 ♪ nothing can compare ♪ 28:25 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 28:29 ♪ Behold our God ♪ 28:34 ♪ seated on His throne ♪ 28:37 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ 28:41 ♪ Behold our king ♪ 28:46 ♪ nothing can compare ♪ 28:49 ♪ Come, let us adore Him ♪ |
Revised 2024-12-12