Julia Melatis – Author

Goditude: a faith-filled attitude that reveals itself in our thoughts and behavior. -JM

I just answered a question on a Facebook post to quickly list three things for which I am thankful. My first response was, “I am thankful for Jesus’ sacrifice in my stead. If He never did anything else for me, that would be more than enough to praise His name forever!” After writing out my other two responses,  I was drawn back to my first. How often do we ask for so many things from God? How upset do we get when things do go the way we want them to go? How often do we ponder (think/meditate) on what God has already done for us through Jesus? Yet, if we really look at our lives in light of the Gospel, we have so much to praise and thank God every day, every moment of our lives.
My mind is swirling with thoughts and verses right now. In the Lord’s (model) Prayer, Jesus gives us insight into how to pray and what to pray about (Matthew 6:9-13). Through it, He shows us a way of thinking and living in a God-honoring way.

● Acknowledge God, His unending love, power, holiness, and greatness. When we acknowledge God in this way, we are also humbling ourselves to follow Him completely, because we cannot do this life and have the life to come without Him.

● Seek God’s kingdom and His will – both to be seen and done here on earth. Jesus said in His teaching about worry, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you”
Matthew 6:33 BSB. We must always keep our eyes on eternity as we live this life in the here and now. None of us knows the length of our days. So we must make the most of today while it is here, seeking God in and through it all.

● Ask for the needs of the day. In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus tells us all the reasons we should not worry. God knows our needs and the needs of others. He wants us to acknowledge our need for Him in our lives and trust Him to make everything work out for the good of us and others (Romans 8:28). He uses people and circumstances to teach, direct, and provide for each other, when we trust the Lord and follow Him. We have no need to fear for our future needs. Remember the Israelites in the wilderness. God told them to only gather enough manna for the day. When some tried to save some until the next day it got bugs and smelled. The only day they could gather more was the day before the Sabbath, so they would be able to rest and not work on the Sabbath Day (Exodus16:15-30). He was teaching them to trust Him.
Scripture is full of references that tell us God wants to bless His people, giving us good gifts and the desires of our hearts (Matthew 7:11, Psalm 37:4). But what desires and gifts is God obligated to fulfill? This reminds me of a humiliating revelation I received approximately 25 years ago. I was talking to a friend over lunch when she told me that God wanted to give me my hearts desire. Immediately, my mind went to a Ford Mustang. Instantly, I thought of my husband’s salvation. It was an eye-opening moment. That I should first think of a worldly thing over my husband’s eternal soul. I repented of that immediately. But it makes me think, just because we ask God for something, it doesn’t mean it is what we need or that God should fulfill the request. Instead, we should be so in tune with God and the voice of His Holy Spirit,  that we can discern how and what to pray for ourselves and others. To pray as Jesus
prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done” Luke 22:42. God blesses us in so many ways each and every day. We need to keep our eyes open to see all He does for us every day.

● Confess our sins, seeking forgiveness and forgiving others who have wronged us. Jesus also taught us that we will be forgiven in the same way we forgive others (Matthew 6:14-15). We must decide, sometimes as an act of sheer will, to forgive , even when we feel justified in holding onto a grudge. Holding onto those bad feelings only hurts us. Sometimes, the other person has already moved on.
Forgiving is for our benefit and releases us from bondage to feelings that can completely wreck our lives. Forgiveness serves the other person as well, when they seek it, releasing them from a burden of guilt and shame. Even if the other person does not seek or want our forgiveness,  we need to forgive, if for no other reason to be in obedience to our Lord. Forgiving does not mean we accept or agree with what was done to us. It does mean we trust God will deal with them and enables us to live our lives free.

● Protect us from the wiles of our enemy. Jesus said, ” The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness” John 10:10 BSB. So much is in Scripture about spiritual warfare and how to repel the devil from our lives. It’s not a one-time thing. We must humble ourselves to God, resist the devil, stand firm in our faith equipped with the Armor of God, keep our thoughts on good and godly things, fight temptation like Jesus did in the wilderness, trust God for help, and repent when we do sin. (James 4:7-8, Ephesians 6:10-18, Philippians 4:8, Psalm 119: 11 & 105, Matthew 4:1-11, 1 Peter 5:7, 1 Corinthians 10:13, 1 John 1:8-10)
So, how is your attitude? If you cannot honestly say it is a Goditude, then go to Him, repent, and ask Him to give you an attitude adjustment.  I actually say those exact words sometimes when the Holy Spirit reveals an attitude problem in me. It’s basically the gist of Psalm 139:23-24: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the way everlasting.”
God deserves our love, reverence, gratitude, and obedience to His Word. He is our Creator, and His Word gives us clear direction for living the life we were created to live. We have a choice to accept or reject His Word, His Son, and eternal life with Him. If we choose Him, then we need to be all in. This passage says it best:
“Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, He gave up his divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, He humbled Himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Philippians 2:3‭-‬11 NLT
Amen. Hallelujah! Praise God!

With Blessings of Hope and Joy,

Julia

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