Remember those Who Have Been Good to You

Daily Devotional

2 Samuel 9:7 And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.

You won’t get to where you want to go without the help of other people. Do not forget to show your gratitude when you reach your destination.

There are bible characters that were guilty of rendering evil for good and it never worked out well for them. Nabal was one example, he forgot the kindness that David and his men did in 1 Samuels 25:10 and spoke harshly to them when they asked for provision and it almost cost him his life then; nevertheless he died shortly after.  The people of Shechem also made the mistake of rewarding the goodness of Gideon with evil. They killed his 70 sons in making Abimelech their leader. In the end, God allowed an evil spirit to come upon him and he slaughtered many of them. The lesson that the scripture teaches is that the price of ungratefulness is loss; you cannot afford to entertain it.

David in 2 Samuels 9 set us for the approach that should be modeled in showing appreciation to those who have been good to us.  David remembered the kindness of Jonathan, who kept him from falling into the hands of his father Saul. In response one of the first priorities of David was to show his gratitude to the house of Saul and Jonathan. When he was established as King over all Israel he asked if there was anyone left of the house of Saul that he may show kindness for the sake of Jonathan.   He was told that Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, who was crippled, was alive. David restored to him all the land of Saul and gave him a seat at the Kings table.

Your approach to showing gratitude should mirror that of David.  He never hesitated to show kindness to those who were good to him when he reached the throne.  In addition, he was generous in his show of gratitude. What David gave to Mephibosheth was more than anyone could have asked for.

Life Application: Keep a gratitude list to remind you of those you plan to show gratitude to and put them at the top of your agenda.

Prayer: Lord, help me to remember those who have been good to me and extend the same grace that was bestowed on me. Help me to honor those who honored me. In Jesus name, amen.