One day – see Luke 12:12-19 – as Jesus Christ was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met Him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”
When He saw them, He said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him – and he was a Samaritan.
Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then He said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

Out of ten people that were healed, only one person came back to thank God – that is, just ten percent of them. This incident accurately represents the reality of the human experience, which is that most people are unthankful to God and their fellow human beings.

To which camp do you belong? Are you among the thankful, or the unthankful?

When God or anyone does something good for you, say thank you. You should do so, not necessarily in order to get more blessings, but rather because it pleases God. Also, because it’s the right thing to do.

"It is good to praise the LORD and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night,"
~ Psalms 92:1-2

I understand that the way things work in this world is that people will do anything only if they can see what they will personally gain from it. To get worldly men and women to do anything, you have to show them how they will profit from it. This is why this world is dominated by selfishness and greed.

Unfortunately, this worldly system has now crept into the church and corrupted her. Even Christians today do good only if there is some personal benefit. To get Christians to read their bible, pray, give thanks, evangelize, and so on, they have to see how they will personally profit from them.

Of course, I believe that it pays to do the right things. Godliness is profitable.

"For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."
~1 Timothy 4:8

However, if your primary motivation in doing good is what you expect to gain from it, you will be greatly disappointed and disillusioned. Learn to do what is right whether it pays or not. Do it as long as it pleases God, regardless of personal gain or loss.

One area of our lives that we seriously need to apply this message is in our giving. Because of the corrupt teaching that godliness is a means to financial gain, many now give mainly to be blessed.

"and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain."
~1 Timothy 6:5

Be careful not to fall into this satanic trap. Doing what is right before God should never be done as a means to material gain. Cultivate an attitude that values godliness for the fact that it pleases God. Our primary concern in life must be to please God and bless others.

Regarding the matter of giving, do not give to God just so that He will bless you. Give to Him because He has already blessed you, and because it pleases Him when you share your blessings.

Never ever take God’s blessings for granted. Learn to give thanks to Him for all blessings because it is good and pleasing to Him.