Sunday School Lesson: Gratitude
Share
The Main Takeaway: We are to give thanks to God no matter the circumstances. Thanksgiving, as a spiritual practice, aligns our will to God’s. We become more concerned with “God’s will be done” than “our earthly wants be met.”
The Lesson Objective: Students will read various Bible verses about gratitude and thanksgiving, discuss their observations, and brainstorm concrete practices to transform their hearts into spirits of gratitude.
Introduction to Lesson on Gratitude
If you’re anything like me, then it’s easy for you to fall into the trap of measuring yourself against people who have more. Larger homes, more money. Greater success. Healthier families. My natural default setting is to compare myself to others and come up short. Remaining in a spirit of gratitude is not a natural response for me, but rather a daily discipline.
Can you relate?
As I opened up Scriptures, searching for gratitude, I found references I expected to see, and others that surprised me. For instance, when Nehemiah returns to Israel following the exile, the magnificent Jerusalem of their memory has been reduced to ash and rubble in reality. The costly consequences of the Israelites turning their backs on God cause them to weep. In the midst of the Israelites' grief and despair, Nehemiah speaks a powerful word to his people that has been repeated for generations.
Nehemiah 8:10 recounts, “Nehemiah said, ‘Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’”
Nehemiah demonstrates that gratitude is grief’s powerful adversary and that a thankful perspective leads to joy.
Despair and jealousy paralyze, while joy and gratitude mobilize. As 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
With Nehemiah’s guidance and optimism, the Israelites are able to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem and secure the city. As believers, we can do what Nehemiah did for one another when a brother or sister is discouraged.
"Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts" (Colossians 3:16).
Biblical Context for Gratitude
According to Psalm 147, what reasons do we have to be thankful to God?
- Designated, appointed, assigned. Read 1 Chronicles 16:41, 2 Chronicles 20:21, 2 Chronicles 31:2, and Nehemiah 12:31. Why do you think God’s people were commanded to give thanks? What does this say to you about your own gratitude in your relationship with God?
- Read John 6:23. How does John describe the location he’s talking to his readers about? It’s like he’s saying, “Hey, remember when … it was the place where Jesus gave thanks.” The memory of Jesus giving thanks impacts John and his readers so profoundly that he is later able to refer to “the place where Jesus prayed” as a landmark.
- Now, read Luke 24:28-32. Pinpoint the exact moment when Jesus’s disciples recognized him. Jesus’s profound presence meets us in the moments of gratitude. That is why communion and “The Great Thanksgiving” are so vital to our spiritual life. Communion (1 Corinthians 10:16, 1 Corinthians 11:24) affords us a moment to pause and fellowship with other believers, in gratitude for the blessings God has collectively bestowed upon us.
The Ultimate Thanksgiving Celebration
Ultimately, our gratitude is a response to God’s love for us and the salvation He’s gifted us through the death and resurrection of his son. Read Psalm 100 as if the psalmist’s words were a prophetic portrait of heaven. Showing gratitude to God while we live on earth is a foreshadowing of what our relationship will be like with Him in heaven.
Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Activity Ideas for Sunday School Lesson on Gratitude
Family Gratitude Journal
- Have students decorate a Gratitude Journal to take home. Each evening for a week (or longer, if you'd like and have time), have students write down specific things they’re thankful for, along with the day's date in their journal. Family dinnertime is a great opportunity to do this.
For the craft, you’ll need:- An inexpensive journal
- Mod Podge
- An inexpensive foam paint brush
- A family photo that can be painted (optional)
- Stickers
- Glitter
- Scissors
- Magazines to cut images from
Instructions: - Have students create a collage to decorate the front cover of their journal. The images they choose should be icons that their family members would all understand.
- Use small amounts of Mod Podge to tack the collage items in place.
- When the design is complete, carefully coat the entire cover with a thin layer of Mod Podge. Globs of Mod Podge could wrinkle the chosen images.
- Optional: When the first coat dries, add another layer.
Write Your Own Psalm: - Psalm 107: 8, 15, 21, and 31 are the exact same stanza: “Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.”
- If you had a life stanza that summarized your relationship with God, what would it be? (Examples: God’s never given up on me. God always provides.
- What are moments you have been in despair, times you have seen God working in your life, specific blessings you are grateful for?
- Combine these statements to create a Psalm.
- Ask for volunteers to read their Psalms out loud.
Here’s My Example:
God is my Homecoming.
When the world’s hatred overwhelms me.
When the selfishness of others presses against me.
When injustice is inflicted upon me
God is my Homecoming.
When, like Solomon, I recognize the vanity of this life
When thoughts of greed or jealousy ensnare me.
When I wish God liked my plans for my life.
God is my Homecoming.
When I witness the faith of my husband and children.
When I hear that my words have made a difference.
When I am content and remember this life is not my home.
God is my homecoming.
@SETschritter
Prayers of Gratitude
Dear God,
I’ll never be able to thank You enough. May I live my life in humble gratitude for the blessing of being known and loved by You.
Dear God,
You’ve done more for me than I will ever comprehend. Yet rather than owing a debt, You have given me the extravagant gift of Your love. May I live a life in perpetual gratitude and contentment for the blessings you have bestowed upon me. May all that You are always be more than enough for me. May I live to honor you.
Digging Deeper into Biblical Gratitude
Reasons to Thank God:
- He reigns (Revelation 4:9, 11:17)
- Gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many (2 Corinthians 1:11)
- He gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:57)
- The grace given to us in Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 1:4)
- God is good. 1 Chronicles 16:34-35
- God’s love endures forever 1 Chronicles 16:34-35
More Bible Verses About Gratitude
2 Chronicles 5:13, 1 Chronicles 29:13, Psalm 7:17, Psalm 9:1, Psalm 35:18, Psalm 106:1, Psalm 106:47, Psalm 118 , Psalm 119:62 , Psalm 136:1-3, Psalm 136:26 , Jeremiah 33:11, Romans 14:6
Photo credit: ©GettyImages/NataliaDeriabina
