Slow (Week 3): Slowing Down to be Grateful
Luke 17:11-19 NIV:
Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” 14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”
Mark 8:34-36 NLT:
Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. 35 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. 36 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
"The tests are always unexpected things, not great things that can be written up, but the common little rubs of life, silly little nothings, things you are ashamed of minding one scrap." –Amy Carmichael
“Almighty God, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ. Strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of your Holy Spirit, keep us in eternal life.” –Daily Office
I Timothy 6:17-19 NIV:
As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
Gratitude slows us down to the speed of real life because it requires us to examine what God actually does for us. When we learn to return more than one time out of ten to give thanks, we more regularly reenter the place where our real life exists: where Christ is.
Psalm 100:4-5 NIV:
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.
Ideas to Help Us Slow Down to be Grateful
Make a plan to slow down and be grateful, even if it fails.
Set aside five true minutes of silence and solitude.
Keep a gratitude journal.
Try living eight hours with no news, social media, or sports.
Set a five minutes daily goal on your reading app.
Set up Notification Summaries to decrease constant notifications
Ask God to help you both desire and live a slower, grateful life.
Philippians 2:13 NLT:
For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.
Jeremiah 6:16 NIV:
This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
If I don’t know how to pray, every thought and expression of gratitude is prayer.
