Nurturing Thankfulness from the Pulpit
Thankfulness is a powerful force that can significantly shape the culture and atmosphere within our church. As pastors and church leaders, we hold the influential privilege of demonstrating our gratitude directly from the pulpit, which significantly impacts our congregation's narrative on thankfulness.
The Impact of Practiced Gratitude
Hearing words of thankfulness from the pulpit exerts a marked influence over the congregation. While encouraging gratitude within the community is beneficial, actively exhibiting it as a leader has a more profound impact. Since gratitude is highly contagious, initiating it at the leadership level can cause it to ripple out and permeate the entire congregation.
Integrating Gratitude into Sermons
While Thanksgiving may seem like an intuitive time to weave gratitude into your sermons, I encourage you to consider maintaining this practice throughout the year. You can share lighthearted or deeply personal stories of things you're grateful for and invite your congregation to adopt a similar mindset. By incorporating an element of thankfulness every time you take the stage, you're inviting your congregation to do the same.
The Bottom Line: Including Gratitude in Your Preaching
Next time you step up to preach or teach, why not make it a point to include expressions of gratitude? It doesn't always need to be in the form of a sermon focused solely on thankfulness.
- Consider thanking your volunteers publicly
- Share personal stories of appreciation
- Express your gratitude towards the congregation for their unwavering dedication
Consider regularizing thankfulness as part of your worship service – whether by starting each service with a moment of gratitude or inviting church members to share their reasons for thankfulness. One approach could be celebrating life changes across the congregation, signified by the transformative impact of embracing Jesus.
I'd love to hear how you've included gratitude in your messages if you decide to embrace this practice. Do let me know how you plan to incorporate thankfulness into your next sermon or learn more on this topic in today's Healthy Church Staff Podcast episode. Let's remember: thankfulness isn't just something we talk about but something we live out. As we model it from the pulpit, we provide a pathway for our whole church to follow suit.
