A Message for the Lonely | Practicing Gratitude

Ahh.. good ole’ gratitude.

It’s the easiest thing to say “I’m so thankful and blessed.” But sometimes it’s the hardest thing in the world to actually practice gratification in our lives.

We’ve all had times in our lives when everything was easy and going exactly how we wanted. We landed the job we wanted, our finances were looking good, and all of our relationships were healthy. So of course during those times it’s like second nature to utter “I’m so blessed!”. And you’re right you are! But here is the tricky part. When your savings starts to dwindle away, the job you thought you wanted turned out to be a lesson learned, and all of your relationships are fleeting right before your very eyes, then what?

I’m sure at this point in time you don’t want to shout from the rooftops how in love you are with your life. Here’s where practicing gratitude comes in. It’s the easiest thing in the world to be happy when everything is going right. But how you choose to act when your world seems to be crumbling is when your character begins to show.

I’ve found that the times in my life that everything I seemed to have loved slipped through my hands like grains of sand was for a reason. GOD WANTED MY ATTENTION. When I was too focused on my job rather than Him, I began disliking my job. When I was too concerned on materialistic things and money, I lost my money. When I was too invested in my earthy relationships rather than my relationship with the Lord, I lost friends. God will isolate you to get your attention.

It’s scary because when we’re isolated we’re uncomfortable for the most part, right? It’s nice to have money and friends and a good job, but it isn’t everything! The only reason we have anything is because of the Lord. So why would we think that we can sustain all these blessings without Him?

I’m currently studying the book of Elijah and Elijah has been inspiring my walk with the Lord.

A little back story on Elijah: he came from Gilead which was a place where no one was proud to come from. He was not rich or had any status. He was a simple man that God used in BIG WAYS. But before God could use Elijah in these big ways, God needed to mold him. Re-shape him, shift his focus, and make sure Elijah was fully dependent on Him. In 1 Kings 17:2-4 God tells Elijah, “ Go away from here and then eastward, and hide yourself by the Brook Cherith, which is east of Jordan.”

( Cherith is a place meaning cutting or ditch.)

So God is telling Elijah to:

1. Go away from here- When the Lord begins putting convictions in your heart you will feel a pulling. You will feel a compelling pull to leave something or someone behind.

2. Turn - As we continue to obey God and listen to His voice you will feel Him Turing you in a different direction. When He speaks, listen. Turn.

3. Hide - Be completely open to God using you for His Will. He will answer your questions, tell you what you want to know, and bless you more than you thought imaginable. Guard your heart and wait on the Lord.

My FAVORITE part of this story about Elijah is that God is asking Elijah to go by a Brook and wait. God told Elijah “you will drink from the brook.” Here’s the kicker … we have NO IDEA that when Elijah goes there if the brook will have water. Brooks are temperamental and they only get water when it rains. Mind you, Israel hasn’t had rain in 3 years during this time! (Jezebel and ahah were the leader of Israel at this time. They worshiped false Gods so God punished them by withholding rain. Look to 1 King to see more.)

This exact place the Lord is calling Elijah to go is a wasteland essentially. Terrain and small, dry trees surround him but little to no life is near. Elijahs willingness to leave the comfort of his home and everyday routine to go be by this brook shows us that he knew God would provide for Him! The lord provides for us every single day. Why would He lead us to a desert to only abandoned us? Oh yeah, HE WOULDN’T.

So when I think of this story of Elijah and how he trusted that is God brought him to this brook, he would drink from it. He knew the kind of God he served and he knew God never leaves us and we are always taken care of.

Sometimes our brooks are overflowing and we have more water than we know what to do with. When this happens we shout hallelujah and thank you God! But when our brook is dry, no water for miles, we’re tired, thirsty, and defeated, then what? Is our Lord no longer good, faithful and just? NO. It means we are to continue to praise Him and know that water is coming. He will satisfy our thirst.

Sometimes God just wants to get you alone and have you fully dependent on Him to see if you will ONLY depend on Him. I practice gratitude on my hardest days. On my easy days gratitude comes naturally. But on my hard days when my bank account is empty, my relationships are suffering, and the world is in chaos I stop. I stop to say this is the day the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it! I will remind myself that the same God the blessed me with all of my glorious things here on earth is the same God that can take them away. He hold me in the palm of His hand and I will continue to find joy and peace even in the desert.

Even when my brook is dry, I will praise Him.

Bible Verses when feel defeated and isolated:

“I will not desert you, nor will I ever forsake you.” (Heb. 13:5).

“God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiently in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.” (2 Cor. 9:8).

“The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safety to his heavenly kingdom.”

(2 Tim. 4:18).