Feeling Thanked in Advance

When responses of grace are nurtured within,

Despite lack of recognition of worth,

We’ve found Divine basis to glory in,

And thanks has its birth.

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Think of a relationship or interaction where, despite your constant grace and extension of favour, you receive no recognition, thanks, or reward. There is plenty of give on your part and only take on theirs—or so it seems.

These situations are a test.

If we can continue to act faithfully, without giving vent or even thought to resentment, then we can expose ourselves to the blessing God has for us in the extension of our Divinely-sponsored grace.

This blessing is the feeling of peace having obeyed the Lord. It’s the peace that transcends understanding. And this blessing is begotten us for our trust, that the Lord is doing something in all of this.

Grace Is Only Easy When God Sponsors It

When ours is the perfect surrender before God, and such surrender is easier than we often think, grace becomes easy. No longer are we much a part of the equation. No longer are our wants and needs really that important. No longer does what we want get in the way of the work of God in the relationship.

Grace is only easy when God sponsors it. When we genuinely obey God, forthrightly seeking what God wants us to seek, which is harmony to every part of our personal and interpersonal world, then grace is made easy. It’s easy because it’s no longer about us, but about God.

Imagine being impervious to resentment and bitterness. The Lord can gift us such grace to convert what we imagine and bring it to reality. But this can only be achieved if we forego our right to ourselves.

This is the Christian challenge: to choose what God wants, not what we want. The moment we do it is the moment the Spirit of God convicts us that this was the right thing to do.

What More Thanks Are Needed?

When we understand this principle, the one about to be presented, we’ll never need another human being’s thanks. Only when we forget this principle will we again need humanity’s thanks. This is the principle:

Every time we’re not recognised or thanked or rewarded as we should be, God recognises, thanks, and rewards us... in advance, we’re thanked.

We know this by the way we feel when we no longer insist on recognition, thanks, or reward. This is a mighty lesson for the parent, for the boss, for the worker, for children, for everyone.

Feeling thanked in advance is about knowing God’s appreciation, and the fact that human appreciation will come if we keep pressing valiantly forward in grace.

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When responses of grace are nurtured within, despite lack of recognition of worth, we’ve found Divine basis to glory in, and thanks has its birth.

© 2012 S. J. Wickham.