Proverbs 12:14
A person will be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth,
and the work of a person’s hands will reward him.
What’s wrong with me?!
I make enough to provide for my needs and my future needs.
I am richer than 80% of the global population.
(Yep. That’s a verifiable number. If you’d like to see how rich you are compared to the rest of the world, click here.)
I can eat at restaurants, own two cars, live in a big house, enjoy a large yard, have vacation plans, etc., etc.
I’ve got all these good things going for me, but I’m still unhappy too often.
I thought that if I achieved financial stability that I’d feel happy.
Nope.
I thought that if I had more fun, more food, more experiences, I would feel happy.
Nope.
What’s a guy gotta do to feel happy?!
Add Good Speech To Good Works.
The fruit—the reward—of our hands is not enough to bring happiness.
To be satisfied with the good in life, we must also produce good fruit from our mouths.
It takes good fruit from our mouths and hands together to be satisfied.
Work diligently while speaking graciously, positively, and gratefully about your life.
When the rewards of my work are being appreciated and highlighted by the words of my mouth, FOMO (fear of missing out) loses power.
When I confess pride and gratitude for what I’ve accomplished, anxiety about failure and insufficiency disappear.
When I share my appreciation for others (especially God), bitterness and loneliness subside.
What could you say today that would empower you to enjoy the good in your life?
Who will you tell about the good things in your life today?
Pastor Joshua
Have anything you’d like to add?
Leave a comment below!
Man… I have definitely found this to be true. While working on cultivating gratitude in my life I’ve realized that just thinking I have things to be grateful for wasn’t enough. But my thankfulness and satisfaction grew tremendously as I’ve intentionally talked about these good things with others. And I needed reminded of that today.
So here’s a good thing I’m sharing to practice: I am so thankful for God’s intervention on behalf of my friends. I’ve seen some loved ones go through difficult things that I couldn’t fix. I couldn’t do much at all. I could only be praying and be supportive. But I see God moving for them, guiding them, healing them. He loves us. I don’t have to carry it all because he does. I’m so glad.
You’ve encouraged me with your example of good confession. Just thanking God for working for you and your family produces some powerful faith and rest. Thanks for sharing, Leah.
How do pride and gratitude co-exist? Rather, humility and gratitude?
That’s a good point, Bill. Thanks for asking for clarification. I use the word pride with great care.
I believe that pride and gratitude can co-exist if the pride you have is appropriate. Not all pride is sinful. Pride that is not tempered with truth becomes sinful because it leads us to worship ourselves rather than God. It attributes good things to us that we haven’t done and cannot do or be. However, appropriate pride in our accomplishments is a feeling of approval for things that we have truly done well. If we do not approve of what good we have done by the words of our mouths, then how can we fully enjoy the fruits of righteousness? The Psalms teach us many times to confess our good achievements with frankness combined with humility. Like Psalm 26:1 “Declare me innocent, O Lord, for I have acted with integrity; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.” or Psalm 26:11 “But I am not like that; I live with integrity. So redeem me and show me mercy.”