Title Thank you.
Contents
Psalm 50:23 Let us give thanks.
Shakespeare's four great tragedies are Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth. Today, I would like to start speaking with the story of 'King Lear', one of these four great tragedies. King Lear of England had three daughters. King Lear had this thought when he was about 80 years old. "Isn't it a bit too much to rule a country until it's old? I'd like to give the territory to my three daughters and spend the last years of my life traveling around the three countries a month."
King Lear summoned his three daughters to put his plan into action. And after confirming how much the daughters love their father, they decided to divide the land according to the volume of that love. First, I asked my eldest daughter, Goneril. "Son, how much do you love this father?" Then the eldest daughter answered boldly without hesitation. "I love you more than my life. There is nothing in this world that is more precious than you. Truly, you are the meaning of my life."
The eldest daughter replied this way, knowing the intentions of her father, King Lear, and preparing to occupy even a little more land. Unbeknownst to this, the king was thrilled and gave 1/3 of the land he ruled to his eldest daughter. And I asked my second daughter the same question. The second daughter, Regan, also lies without saliva in her mouth. "I love nothing but my dad. You're the only reason I exist in this world." Obsessed with that, the king also gave 1/3 of his kingdom to his second daughter.
Now it is the turn of the third daughter, Cordelia. But in fact, King Lear loved the third daughter the most. So, leaving the kingdom's yolk land for the youngest, I asked the question I had for my two daughters before them. But the third daughter, who was originally unflattering and sincere, answers. "Dad! I love you, but I can't say I love you only. I have a husband, and I have a lot of people to share my love with. I love you, but it's not just you."
Hearing this, the king became upset and gave the land to the youngest to give to the first and second. And as he had promised himself, he laid down his real power as all kings. And as planned, I visited my eldest daughter. But what is this? The eldest daughter, who said that she loved her father so much, treated her father harshly and kicked him out of the castle.
Shakespeare made famous words through the main characters in each of his works. For example, in 'Hamlet', he left the saying, "To live or to die, that is the question." In 'King Lear', he left these famous words through King Lear, who was expelled from the castle after being subjected to humiliation and humiliation that he could not have imagined as a king. "An unthankful child pierces the chest sharper than the sharp teeth of a snake."
Gentlemen, these words apply not only to our physical parents, but also to our spiritual parents, our Heavenly Father. A child who doesn't appreciate his parents is like a viper's teeth to dig into his parents' hearts. But children who are always grateful to their parents are undoubtedly good children. And gratitude is the standard by which we can measure the state of our faith. Check your faith status today. Are you thankful? I am living a good life of faith. No thanks, only complaints? My faith is bad. It needs to be improved quickly.
Actually, we have a lot to be thankful for. But why do we still fail to thank properly? The reason is that we don't focus on the conditions to be grateful for, but only the conditions to complain about. In other words, a grateful person sees and gives thanks for one thing to be grateful for, even if there are 99 things to be grateful for. But the complaining person sees 99 things to be thankful for, but does not see it, but sees one thing to complain about.
In fact, when we look around us, we discover that the people we should be thankful for are not grateful, and those who cannot be thankful under various circumstances or conditions are thankful. But there is something we must remember. It means that if we omit thanks for what we are grateful for, the hall to receive will be omitted. Conversely, if you give thanks even in situations where you can't really give thanks, there will come a situation where you have no choice but to give thanks. Today we want to thank you for three things.
1. I have to be thankful that life has not gone the way I wanted it to.
When anyone sees what they are grateful for, they give thanks for doing what they want, and they give thanks for having their ambitions fulfilled. However, this kind of gratitude is possible even where there is no faith. But we should be thankful for what didn't go our way. Take a moment to look back at your own life. If your life had gone the way you wanted it to, what would it be like now?
Perhaps you are more famous than you are now, and you may be able to lead a more prosperous life financially. It may also have resulted in a higher position in society. You may also become a person who travels the world in a hurry. But if you had such a life, you wouldn't be as compassionate as you are now, and you wouldn't be as familiar with God as you are now.
Think about it. My husband makes good money. At home, he is kind and helpful with household chores. All of our children are honors at school. There are also nice houses. There are also good teas. There is also health. No problem. Very happy. Satisfied. However, without realizing it, it is easy to become too far from even God to be close to you because your face, your tone of voice, and your actions are filled with pride.
Therefore, husbands and wives and their children often get upset, and these problems, other problems, and various problems arise, so they humbly come to God, cry out and pray, meet God, and understand the circumstances of those in need. It's better to be human. Therefore, it is a title to be thankful for that it did not go according to my will.
2. You should be grateful for the hard work you have done so far.
In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul thanked God for the fact that he labored more than all the apostles. It is the grace of God that we also suffer more and work harder than others. Sometimes we lose money because of Jesus, we don't cheat because of Jesus, we don't get to hang out with our friends because of Jesus, and we get bullied and hated by our colleagues.
But that's a blessing. If you are often accused of being unfairly framed while working for the Lord, and if you have suffered to death for the Lord, that is a title to be truly grateful for. And God approaches people through suffering, and people come closer to God through suffering. Suffering and suffering are therefore beneficial. Psalm 119:71 also says: "It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes." So, thank you for what you have suffered so far and for what you will suffer in the future.
You may know Sister Lee Ji-sun, who suffered third-degree burns all over her body in a car accident and became famous with the book 'I love you, Ji-sun!' The sister said that one day she asked a middle-aged man who recognized her even in the park, although it was embarrassing. "Why do you love me so much?" That middle-aged man said so. "Lee Ji-sun is our hope. No matter how difficult it is, thinking of Lee Ji-sun gives me courage to stand up."
Upon hearing this, Sister Jisun Lee just realized that being alive is a hope and a dream for others, and she gave thanks to God. If Sister Lee Ji-sun had lived an ordinary life with her pretty face before her accident, what would she have said to people like that? What could have given people courage and dreams?
Everyone! Don't you think that you're only suffering because you came to a foreign land for nothing? But see you later. Such suffering is actually a great benefit. Suffering is something to be grateful for, not something to be blamed for. I hope that I can thank you for the hardships in the past and even the troubles in the future.
3. We should be grateful for what we have been able to serve.
You and I have served in our own way. We should be thankful for being able to do so for our family, for the church, and for society. If we had not had a chance or a place to serve, our talents would have rusted. Our life is a combination of duty and service. If you live only on duty, there is no joy there. But those who serve will taste heaven there.
Think about it. How selfish are we? But how grateful are we for God to sustain us and use us as instruments of service? Because I am so busy doing service, I cannot go out into the world and I am not corrupted. And God has given me and all of you joy, reward, and blessings through service. Serving in the house of God is a wonderful thing to be grateful for.
I also made Bukeoguk with my family last week because it was their side dish. It takes quite a bit of time to cut the halibut with scissors to make it easy to eat. My wrist hurts. I cut the hot peppers finely, but later my fingers hurt and I had to soak my hands in cold water for a long time. I prayed while slicing radishes, scallions, and shidabari. "Lord, please make everyone who eats this northern soup become a person of worship (evangelism, prayer, humility)!"
Everyone, I don't know how difficult it is to prepare each side dish once. Of course, to serve as a choir member, come early to practice, and how cumbersome is the effort? And how hard are Sunday school teachers? How much effort do you have to put in trying to teach the Word to the level of children every week? And although you can't see it, there are a lot of people who are working hard in every nook and cranny. However, not everyone does this kind of service. You must have faith, you must have enough realization and character, and you must also follow your health. In other words, that I am serving is a subject to be grateful for, not a subject to complain about.
Organize your words. There are three types of thanks, and in English, they are if thanks, because of, and in spite of. If thanks means to thank you if you do something like this or that. It is a conditional thank-you saying that you will not be audited if that is not the case. Because of thanks is 'thank you because of.' is to do It's a natural thank you. But people find it difficult to even appreciate this much. On the other hand, the gratitude we should aim for is in spite of'. 'Nevertheless' thanks. It's not something to be thankful for, but it's something to be thankful for. This is the most mature form of gratitude.
Conclusion. Let's thank you. Let's be thankful that my life hasn't gone the way I wanted it to, thank you for the hard work so far, and thank you for being able to serve. The more we give thanks, the more that gratitude comes back to us as grace and blessing. And you and I will be happy. God is also glorified through that thanks. This is today's text. "He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving glorifies me; to him who does the right thing I will show the salvation of God" (Psalm 50:23).