Thankfulness

As the new year approaches, this is the time when we reflect upon the past year.  God has given us so many blessings this past year both spiritually and physically.  As I think back on what God has done I am reminded of the account in Luke chapter nine after the seventy disciples returned to Christ.  They rejoiced that the demons were subject to them but Christ rebuked them.  He told the disciples not to rejoice over the fact that the demons obeyed them but, rather, that their names were written down in heaven.

So many times we become like the disciples.  We rejoice that we are not like that publican or the Pharisee.  We rejoice that we have the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of other tongues.  We rejoice in the fact that God used us in the gifts of the Spirit or even that we exemplify the fruit of the Spirit.  We rejoice that we are in the ministry or that we led x number of people to Christ.  We rejoice over so many accomplishments when the real rejoicing should be done not over accomplishments but over the fact that our names are written down in heaven because we received God's gift of salvation.