A pastor from Argentina called Juan Carlos Ortiz was concerned that his church was educated beyond its level of obedience. His people knew a lot more than they were putting into practice and many of them were getting two or three sermons each week with little opportunity to apply what they had been taught.

One Sunday, Juan Carlos Ortiz stood up to preach on the words of Jesus, “Love one another as I have loved you.” To the amazement of his people, on each of the following Sundays he came back to preach the same sermon. Each time he said, “We are not moving on until we obey this command …

In my childhood days, one of the most important pieces of advice my parents gave to me when receiving a gift was, “Don’t forget to say, thank you.” Having an attitude of gratitude was of the highest importance.

Similarly, my wife Sue has told me how her mother impressed upon her to be gracious and thankful to others because, “you can afford to, that is why I named you Susan Grace.”

One of the most prominent qualities of a godly person that can be found in the Bible, is that of thankfulness. So important is this attitude of gratitude, that it is continually mentioned in the Psalms and in Paul’s …