Attitude Of Gratitude

Psalm 8: 1 – 9

Attitude of gratitude

1 O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! 2 Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, because of Your enemies, that You may silence the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, 4 What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? 5 For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, 7 All sheep and oxen—Even the beasts of the field, 8 The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea that pass through the paths of the seas. 9 O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth!

As I drove to work this morning today’s chapter study came vividly into my thinking. There is a saying that says, ‘As in Rome, do as the Romans do.’ I think that verse applies significantly to the people of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

If you plan on visiting the city of Brotherly Love you should be aware of certain customs to not be overwhelmed. The planners of our road and housing systems must have all gone to Confusion University. When you drive on our street be aware of a ‘gauntlet.’ People exit their home and try to enter the limited access roads. If they see the slightest opening they will cut into traffic in front of you then proceed to then go 10 miles under the speed limit and dare you to crash into them. As you look into your rear-view mirror you realize that there are no cars behind you and all this driver could have done was wait one second longer until you passed by before pulling into traffic. You see the thought is that the highway belongs to them.

When traffic slows down for traffic lights, school buses, or garbage trucks, those aggressive drivers are staring at you from their side road wanting you to be kind a let them pull out and enter your lane. If you are courteous and let the person to pull out and go ahead of you, they ignorantly do not ever offer a wave of thanks. I watch the person I just let in ahead of me totally ignore any other drivers request and that they would not extend the same courtesy to others. Most people just ignore the stares and line up bumper to bumper.

People want others to be kind to them without having to do the same for others. I have a fellow Pastor who works (not serves) at my church who philosophy is I expect others to help me in my ministry but I will not offer any assistance to them.

I cannot change this guy or anyone else for that matter. The Lord has shown this to me to do all things in kindness as best as I can for His Namesake. I need to allow an attitude of gratitude to develop in my everyday experiences.

More importantly I need to focus my thinking and be thankful for all the great and wonderful things my Holy God has done for me. I think this is important for all who call Him Lord and Father to be appreciative of all that He does. David took some time to think of this very thing and put down in writing some valuable words for us to take to heart.

The psalm is a hymn of worship to the Creator, and a description of man’s intended higher status in that creation, exceeding that of the physical heavens and of all other created things, but only once he is returned to innocence.

1 O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens!

The psalm begins and ends with the same two lines. This is the first aim of the psalmist, to ascribe praise to our Lord Yahweh, the One Who Is the great and mighty Overlord over His people, the One Whose name and nature is revealed as excellent throughout all the world, by nature if not by man. Thus the splendor, the majesty, the overall excellence of His name Is being declared as Psalm 148.13 says, ‘Let them praise the name of the LORD, for His name alone is exalted; His glory is above the earth and heaven.’

‘The name’ to Israel ever indicated the essence of the one to whom the name was applied. Here it is The Father God, ‘the One Who Is’, ‘the One Who causes to be’, Lord of Being, Lord of Creation. And His name Is all-excelling, majestic over all the earth.