30 Days of Cultivating Thankfulness Day 3: Root Repair – Bitterness - Denise Pass
by | Nov 3, 2016 | Believers, Bible, Bible Study, biblical, blessings, Body of Christ, Christian, Christian Encouragement, Christianity, Count Your Blessings, Daily Devotion, devotions, Discipline, God, God’s Word, grace, Gratitude, Healing, heals, Holy Spirit, Hope Reinvented, inspiration, Jesus, Jesus Christ, knowing God, Lord, Mental Health, Perspective, Persuasion, Philosophy, Positive Thinking, Principles, Promises, Provision, psychology, revelation, Thankfulness, Thanksgiving, Theology, Truth, Uncategorized, Victorious Christian Living, Worldview |
Inspirational Thought of the Day:
People matter more than our lives being gratified by them.
Scripture of the Day:
Hebrews 12:15
“See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God, that no one be like a bitter root springing up and causing trouble, and through him many become defiled.”
Our faces bare our hearts. Bitterness is one of those character traits that can be spotted in an expression quite readily. It is not very attractive, either. Just sayin’. There is something about the look of having just ingested a lemon that says “UGLY”.
Where does it come from? Sometimes we can be offended by someone’s treatment of us and pride rises up within us. Or maybe we are let down by life’s circumstances in general. When we allow bitterness to germinate and spread as we contemplate whatever it is that we resent, we are in danger of letting bitterness overtake us.
If we allow bitterness to take root, it can affect our whole personality, lives and those around us, too. Sure enough, bitterness also squashes any remote thankfulness we might have, as we are too absorbed in whatever it is that we are dissapointed by.
But there is a way of escape and it is paved by choosing to love those we have become embittered by. People matter more than our lives being gratified by them. People will let us down from time to time, but perhaps our expectations are misplaced.
Recognizing negative thoughts is half the battle. Turning those bitter thoughts into gratitude takes dying to self and choosing to replace those thoughts with God’s truth. Taking captive thoughts that do not please God and replacing them with His Word begins to transform our minds and hearts to lives characterized by thankfulness.
Lord, thank You for Your Holy Spirit Who reveals attitudes that displease You. Help us to weed out what displeases You and to cultivate hearts overflowing with gratitude.
Denise Pass | Author | Singer | Speaker | Worship Leader
