Some of the evils of an ungrateful heart are highlighted in Romans 1:21-32

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up…
1. Ingratitude results in vain/fruitless imagination
…but became-vain in their imagination
Ingratitude frustrates the potency of imagination. When you are ungrateful, no matter how you imagine a breakthrough, it will not manifest. As powerful as imagination is, it will not produce when you are ungrateful. Your expectation will not materialize if you are not grateful. For your imagination to be fruitful, you must become a thankful person.
2. Ingratitude brings spiritual blindness
…and their foolish heart was darkened
Ingratitude brings spiritual blindness; any man who is not grateful will lose his ability to see visions/revelations. You will be void of information. The opposite of darkness is light. Light means access to information. It means revelation, discovery. When you are in darkness, you are void of this.
3. A man who is not grateful is abandoned by God.
…wherefore God also gave them up
Gratitude keeps God by your side. Gratitude keeps God in a reachable closeness. The presence of God is made available to a man who is always grateful. Even though God made a promise in Hebrews 13:5 (Amp) not to leave you (…for He [God]  Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [ will] not, [ will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor [let] you down (relax my hold on you)! not!]), if you are not grateful, He will not keep this promise. You have to be continuously grateful to God before this promise will work.
4. Ingratitude keeps you in perpetual bondage
Instead of Jonah to be grateful that God counted him worthy to be used, he was not grateful. He had complains. He murmured. He fled to Tarshish in rebellion to God’s instruction. As a result of his disobedience, he was thrown into the sea and was swallowed up by a fish. He was in the belly of the fish for three days. But when he made up his mind to be grateful to God, the Lord spoke unto the fish and it vomited out Jonah. See Jonah 2:9-10:
But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD. And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
When you become grateful, your captivity is broken.
Paul and Silas were in bondage in the prison house. But after prayers, they turned over to praises. They began to celebrate God and give Him thanks. Suddenly, the door opened. The chains fell and they were set free (Acts 16:25-26).
When you turn your situation to a praise situation, no matter the captivity, as you praise God in the midst of it, there will be deliverance.
5. Ingratitude attracts Judgement
Every miracle is sustained by gratitude. Nebuchadnezzar was judged by God for being unthankful to God. He was reduced from being a human being to become an animal. When you are not grateful to God for your current status, you qualify yourself for demotion.  Nebuchadnezzar accredited his success to his wisdom, power and might and was not grateful to God. As a result of this, his testimony of success was taken away from him. (See Daniel 4:28-37)
6. Ingratitude destroys your faith
That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus. Philemon 1:6
Ingratitude incapacitates/destroys/frustrates the potency of faith. It makes your faith to be ineffective. When you are not grateful, you cannot operate in the miraculous; you cannot see the move of God. The application of your faith only becomes effective if you are grateful to God in the area of the goodness you have in Christ Jesus.
Jesus gave thanks for the bread He had even though they were few. See Matthew 15:36- 37- And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left, seven baskets full.
When Jesus gave thanks for the few bread and fish, heaven supplied the remainder. Even in your insufficiency, give thanks to God for His provision- that He is the God that provides. As you thank Him as provider, whenever there is an issue of insufficiency, the power to break the yoke of insufficiency will rise.
Ingratitude destroys your ability for performance. On the other hand, when you are grateful to God for the first miracle, no matter how little, power to do another one comes upon you. When you give thanks to God, He will force your enemies to be afraid of you. You will have dominion.
If you are not grateful in any area of the covenant (the grace of God which you have in Christ), your power will not work in that area. You cannot cast out demons if you do not thank God that Jesus suffered in the hand of the devil that you might have victory over the devil. See Colossians 1:12-14- Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.
Some things you can be grateful for as shown in 2Corinthians 8:9 and Isaiah 53:1-12 include:
a. Your Prosperity- Christ became poor, that we, through His poverty might be rich.
(2 Corinthians 8:9- For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich).
b. Success without unnecessary struggle- The sacrifice of Jesus makes you have manifestation that is not dented. (Isaiah 53:2- For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground…). A tender plant grows without evidence of struggle. When it grows out from the soil, there is no mud or dent on it even though it grew out of mud.
c. Love and Acceptance by men- Jesus was rejected by men. No one desired him so that you can be desired. As a child of God, you can no longer suffer rejection because Jesus has paid the price for you to be accepted. (Isa 53:3- He is despised and rejected of men…)
d. Complete Joy- He was a man of sorrow so that you can have complete joy.  Joy and excitement is your birthright as a child acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him… – Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows).
e. Victory over sin- He paid the price for all our sins.  We now appear before the Father as holy; just like we have never sinned before in our lives. (Isa 53:5- But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities …).
f. Peace- He paid the price for our peace.  He fought all our battles on our behalf that we may have abundant peace (Isa 53:5- …the chastisement of our peace was upon Himself.  We have abundant health by His sacrifice (Isa 53:5- …the chastisement of our peace was upon him…).
g. Divine health and healing: He took all our sicknesses and infirmities upon Himself. We have abundant health by His sacrifice (Isa 53:5-…and with his stripes we are healed). He was afflicted for your healing. Don’t wait till you are sick before you thank God for your healing.
h. Boldness- Jesus Christ was silent so that we can talk without intimidation.  By His sacrifice, we can speak boldly as regards every issue we are confronted with.  By this
sacrifice, we are not intimidated by our present experiences while preaching the gospel of Christ. (Isa 53:7- He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth:
he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth).
i. Justice- He was denied justice so we will always have justice over judgment (Isa 53:8- He was taken from prison and from judgment…)
j. Your marriage: He did not marry for you to marry. (Isaiah 53:8-.. and who shall declare his generation?
k. Fruitfulness- He had no child so that you will be fruitful. By His sacrifice, bareness has no place in you (Isaiah 53:8- . and who shall declare his generation?)
l. Longevity- He died young that we might live long (Isa 53:8- . . for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken).
m. Eternity in heaven- He went to hell that we may go to heaven (Isa 53:9- And he made his grave with the wicked…).
Gratitude is what gives you the power to rise against the contradiction. The boldness and power to operate will not come unless you are grateful for what Christ did in that direction.
7. Thanksgiving gives you access to your expectations/desires
You will not have your desires fulfilled except you are grateful. That is why many keep praying in Church and yet do not get their heart desire. The reason is because they are not grateful. Thanksgiving gives you access to your next level. The ungrateful are kept in their old level- no progress, no moving forward, no access to their desire.
If you want to enter into your next level, you can only enter by thanksgiving. See Psalms 100:4- Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
Gate is different from door. You cannot see the other side through a door, but you can see the other side through a gate. Door separates you from vision. In door, you do not see the blessing of others so you are not envious. But in gate, you see the blessings of others and yet cannot enter into your own blessing. You don’t feel bad if you are locked out by a door but you will enter depression if you are locked out by a gate. Gate means that in your restriction, you are seeing people succeeding. You don’t have a husband, but you are seeing people marrying. You don’t have a child, yet you are seeing people with their children. You are seeing progress, but you are not a part of the progress. Gate means separated from celebration. You can see your desire, but you are not allowed to participate.
You can only break through gate with thanksgiving. Anyone who does not give thanks to God will only be seeing people testifying, but will not be a part of it. May this not be your portion in Jesus name, amen.
When you do not appreciate God’s mercy, you disqualify yourself from another show of His mercy. Do not take any blessing or provision for granted. Do not take any arrival for granted. Many departed but did not arrive: Accident, kidnapping happened to them. Your safe arrival is a testimony of God’s mercy. Ability to urinate is a miracle. Ask those with prostrate disease.
Be thankful, not just by giving money, but verbalize it. Make sure, “Thank you Jesus” becomes your chorus. It empowers you for accelerated progress and unhindered success.
When you rise up in the morning, say “Thank you Jesus!”
When you lie down, say “Thank you Jesus!”
Even in the midst of your busyness, say ‘Thank you Jesus!”
When you are eating, say “Thank you Jesus!”
When you finish eating, say “Thank you Jesus!”
When you are driving or being driven, say “Thank you Jesus!”
When you come down from the vehicle, say “Thank you Jesus!”
May the phrase: “Thank you Jesus!” become your popular slogan in the mighty name of
Jesus, amen.
By Pastor Samuel O. Osaghae, e-mail: [email protected]