Have You Forgotten? 11.25.
07
Have You Forgotten?
1 Chronicles 16:7-12
Objective: (1) To remind everyone of what we are truly
grateful for (salvation) and (2) to encourage obedience to God
(devotion to Him) and evangelism (personal testimony) as true
forms of thanksgiving.
Greetings
Read Text
Opening Prayer
Introduction
Our title for today is “Have you forgotten?” And as
Thanksgiving holiday was celebrated just last Thursday
(Nov22), it is but fitting for us to remember as well all the
blessings God has done for us.
In today’s world, hearing that someone is contented with
his/her life is a rare find.
There was once a TV show that conducted an impromptu
survey on 30 people. Each of them was given a 2-minute
airtime, allowing them to talk about anything that comes to
mind. Surprisingly, 30 out of 30 had one common theme:
DISCONTENTMENT. They all voiced out their complaints on
the government, on taxes, on the politicians, etc.
Why is it so hard for us to be thankful / find contentment?
1
The cause of discontentment is FORGETFULNESS.
1. We forget our priorities.
 We want more. We are blinded by the glitz and
glamour of fame.
 Share discontentment with my job due to desire to
have a “prestigious” job, forgetting that my priority
is to submit to God and His will.
2. We forget who we are serving.
3. We forget to count our blessings.
 Materialism
o Advertisements are all around us telling us
that we need to buy their stuff in order for us
to be happy.
o Madame Blueberry
 Worries of Life
o With all of life’s hardships, we ask “What
have I got to be thankful for?”
o Someone once said, “Everyone of us is
more blessed than we are hurt.”
o We tend to dwell on our problems, our
misery, forgetting the blessings we have.
The cure for discontentment is a thankful heart.
To have a thankful heart, we must keep in focus the benefits
we have received.
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To answer the question “What have I got to be thankful for?”

Psalm 103 has already listed it down for us: How can I show my gratitude to God?
1. forgives our sins 3 ways to show our gratitude:
2. heals our diseases 1 Chronicles 16:8-12
3. redeemed us from death 1. CALL ON HIS Name (v.8)
4. crowned us with love and compassion  How?
5. satisfies our desires with good things i. Acknowledge Him as the Lord of your
life.
 God did not just create us and leave us to fend for  Hosea 13:4-6
ourselves. When we strayed, He even made a way for us  v.4 – the Lord expected the Israelites
to be able to be with Him again. He didn’t leave it up to us to acknowledge Him as their only
to save ourselves, knowing that we can’t do it. (Love and God and Savior because it was He
Mercy) who brought them out of their
 Then He not only saved us but He also provides for us. He misery.
gave us an inheritance as His children. He blesses us with  Similarly, the Lord has brought us
good things. Jeremiah 32: 40-41 - He rejoices in doing out of “Egypt” (Satan’s grasp) and
good to us. (Grace) that is reason enough to
acknowledge Him as our God.
Now that we know that we have so much to be thankful for, (Psalm 116:12-13 AMP)
what must be our response?
12
What shall I render to the Lord for all His
benefits toward me? [How can I repay Him
OUR RESPONSE: Gratitude! for all His bountiful dealings?]
 Gratitude is more than just a feeling. It is driven by
13
action! You are so grateful that you can’t just stop there I will lift up the cup of salvation and
– you want to give back something in order to show deliverance and
how much you appreciate what has been done for you. call on the name of the Lord.

 Illustration: FEUDALISM
Feudalism was characterized by the granting of
fiefs, chiefly in the form of land and labor, in return
for political and military services—a contract

sealed by oaths of homage and fealty (fidelity).
The grantor was lord of the grantee, his vassal, but
both were free men and social peers.
-- Microsoft Encarta Reference Library
ii. Make Him your priority! SPEND
TIME WITH HIM
 Not spending time with the Lord (not
making Him our priority) shows
ingratitude to Him and to all He has
done for us. (and lack of complete
understanding of what He has done
for us)
 Beware of this attitude!
 Our text says in verse 11 that we
must“...seek His face always.” (1
Chro 16:11)
 Doing our daily devotions is not a
ritual that we have to do because we
are commanded to do it. After all, we
are not robots.
 Rather, it is an act of gratitude!
 I choose to spend time with God
because I want to know more of the
good God who cares so much about
me.
 Sometimes we want to but we “just
don’t have the time.” Choosing to
spend time with God shows that we
are serious with our relationship with
Him.
Have You Forgotten? 11.25.07
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 In the same way, doing the rest of the
EPHOD 10 pt. plan is done, not just
because it will help our spiritual
growth, but because we want to do it,
period.
2. TESTIFY to His goodness (vv 8-9)
 This is where missions and evangelism come in.
 “...make known among the nations what he has
done.” (v.8)
 “...tell of all His wonderful acts.” (v.9)
 If you’re really thankful, you can’t help but tell!
 Ps. 71:8; 15-18; 23-24; Isaiah 63:7
 ILLUST: Café Maxim and Franz Lehar’s The Merry
Widow
o The widow pays most of the taxes in the country and
keeps the economy going with her spending, so local
officials worry when they hear that she is travelling
to Paris, France, to find a new husband. They send
Prince Danilo after her on a mission to win her heart
and keep her bank account in the country.
(Microsoft® Encarta® Reference Library 2003.)
o The Merry Widow, which was first produced at
Theater-an-der-Wein on December 30, 1905. had
more than five thousand performances. At one time,
it ran simultaneously in five different languages in
five different theaters, all in Buenos Aires.(
http://bobjanuary.com/lehar.htm)
3. REMEMBER the wonders He has done (v.12)
 Keep an inventory / “blessings of today” list.
 In this way, you won’t forget and you can always
look back to the goodness of God and be
encouraged.
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Conclusion

It is very important not to forget all the things that the Lord has
done and is continuing to do for us. Forgetting means we
didn’t really appreciate it at all. The best way to show our
gratitude is to remember all of it and out of that remembrance
will spring our deep devotion to Him.

Song: “Thank You, Lord”

Closing prayer