Giving thanks to God for all the good things he has done issomething that should pour out of the heart of every believer. Parish leadersand clergy have a unique opportunity to inspire and teach gratitude.
Scripture points us to this act of worship in the Psalms. “Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD; cry out to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with a song of praise, joyfully sing out our psalms. For the LORD is the great God, the great king over all gods.” - Psalms 95:1-3
Finding ways for your ministry to encourage people tooverflow with thankfulness doesn’t have to be strenuous. Here are just a fewways you can focus on teaching gratitude this season.
A Couple Things to Keep in Mind
Not everyone thinks exactly like you and responds in thesame way as you do. To lead your parishioners well, it’s important to rememberthese truths because God created every person uniquely. Teaching gratituderequires knowledge of different ways people can respond in thankfulness, so allpeople feel comfortable expressing their feelings to the Lord.
It is also important to note that in order to inspiregratitude, people must know about your gratitude campaign and get on board.
Methods of Teaching Gratitude
Acts of Service
Performing acts of service is a great way for people toexpress their gratitude for all the Lord has done in their life. Giving back tofamilies in need or to organizations who are making an impact can provide your parishleaders with a strategic way to rejoice in the Lord. It also encourages othersto see the goodness of God’s grace by receiving the act of service. Here is alist of acts of service to get you started:
- Serving at a local soup kitchen
- Making meals for the elderly
- Cleaning the house of a family in need
- Starting a meal train for a family who has a newbaby
- Encourage Quality Time to Teach Gratitude
Quality time is a great way to call those in your ministrytogether to teach them how to be grateful. Set aside time for people to sharewith each other about the things God has done and rejoice with each other abouteach thing. Encourage them to go out and find ways to spend quality time withtheir family members and friends to rejoice in the Lord, even if it’s a hardseason. Often, people need to find the positive hand of God in their life ifthey are going through a rough season, and this is one way you can point themback to Christ.
Use Words of Affirmation to Teach Gratitude
Even though it might seem simple, words of affirmation aregreat ways to encourage your parishioners to be thankful. One way to teachgratitude is by giving people a list of Thanksgiving Bible verses to read backto the Lord. Repeating God’s truth back to God reminds each believer of thedeep truth scripture holds for us. You can even encourage your members to writethese truths out and give it to others in your parish or community. Here’s alist of Bible references to get you started.
- 1 Chronicles 16:34
- Ezra 3:11
- Psalm 7:17
- Psalm 100:4
- Jeremiah 30:19
- 1 Corinthians 1:4
- Ephesians 5:4
- Philippians 4:6
- 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Give Gifts to Teach Gratitude
Making small gifts that have Bible verses about gratitude attached to them is another strategic way parishioners can show their gratitude. Here’s a list of ways to use these gifts:
- Hand out small gifts to each person in yourparish
- Provide necessities to those in need in yourcommunity
- Serve families with whatever gift they may needin whatever season they are in (elderly couples, new families, families who justlost a job, etc.)
If you try any of these ideas, we’d love to hear from you. Contact us and let us know how it goes!