THANKS BE TO THE LORD GOD OUR FATHER WHOSE CONSTANT LOVE ENDURES FOREVER!
“A dear Christian lady who resided in assisted living expressed it this way:
‘I get my Bible and read until I can’t read anymore. Then I open my hymnal and I sing until I can’t sing anymore. Then I pray until I can’t pray anymore. Then I just sit in this chair and let God love me.’”
Perhaps you, like I, have known mature Christians who, like the lady in our illustration, had a plan and a set place for private worship during which personal reflections on God’s constant love elicited heartfelt thanks.
Comes to mind Mrs. Fannie Cash with whom it was my distinct privilege to visit in her home from time to time. Her favorite “spot” was a setting room corner which contained an old mahogany rocker, an overhead lampstand, a small round table with two objects on it: a big family Bible and a pair of reading glasses. “This is where my God and I get together so He can talk to me and I can thank Him for His blessings.” God was real to my 98-year-old friend.
Q: Is He real to you? Thanks be to the Lord God our Father whose faithful love endures forever!
The man after God’s own heart David had in mind a place which signified God’s presence. He bowed in the direction of God’s “holy temple” to give thanks to the Lord God from whom life and all of life’s blessings flowed – Psalm 138:7-8 . . .
From the beginning of our series of studies on how to pray as taught by the Lord Jesus, we focused first on the One to whom we pray - the Lord God our Father in Heaven – and then we turned our attention to the things He has done. Praise Him then give thanks to Him.
Praise and Thanks are Twins born of God’s Love for His Creation!
When observing the Lord’s Supper, we begin by giving thanks as did Jesus: “and when He had given thanks”. If our Lord followed His own pattern for praying, supposedly He first praised God for Who He is then gave thanks to God for all that He has done . . . for all that His Hand has provided.
His Hand is a term used in the Bible to signify His Power to generate all that needs to be done . . . to prove . . . provide . . . protect . . . perfect.
Praise God for Who He is and give thanks for the things He has done.
Give thanks to God for proving His love and truth . . . !
Give thanks to God for providing all we need . . . !
Give thanks to God for protecting us from evildoers . . . !
Give thanks to God for perfecting His purpose in us . . . !
Praise God for Who He is and give thanks for the things He has done. Amen!
As did David, let each of us think it . . . say it . . . sing it . . . show it.
Let me . . .
Praise the Lord and give thanks in my heart. “As a man thinks in his heart . . .”
Perhaps you find yourself lying in bed at night trying to go to sleep while your mind entertains thoughts of could’ve, would’ve, should’ve as the events of the day pass in review. The most effective antidote to the problems of the day is a rehearsal of God’s goodness and mercy that follows us all the days of our lives on our way to dwell in the House of the Lord!
Jesus voiced His concern about all that goes through our minds when He cautioned us to remember that “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” Which is why you hear me from time to time offer the suggestion, “Before opening mouth, be sure brain is in gear.”
Think of it this way: “The problem of the heart is the heart of the problem.”
Well, since many of us have heart problems of this kind as well as the other kind, may we take to heart David’s prescription, “I will praise the Lord with all my heart!”
Praise the Lord and give thanks in my world. “Before the gods” is how David said it. Before the “gods” of this world! Jesus counseled us to “let our light shine” before those who delight in things of “the night” . . . Let us think, say and do that which is right in God’s sight . . . Be thou an example of “the believer” in word and in deed. Thus, “I will praise the Lord and give thanks in my world!”
Praise the Lord and give thanks in song. What would we do without songs? Festive Holiday Traditions like the Lighting of the Great Tree, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Pre-Christmas concerts – all feature singing along with all other forms of musical renditions.
On a lesser but nonetheless important scale of making music, folks like you and me burst into song as we feel inspired to praise the Lord – if not in the shower, maybe in the car as we drive along, sometimes in the hallway as we walk to and fro, and every now and then even here in this place where folks gather for whatever . . . Why not? If the Lord has put a song in your heart, sing it!
Praise the Lord and give thanks in humility. Even though he was king, David said, “I will bow down” in His presence. The bowed head, even in silence, speaks loudly to God of the humility of the petitioner. So often, words are so inadequate, yet the Lord our God knows the heart of the child of God who comes to Him in humility.
Some folks praise the Lord with their lips . . . with deeds of kindness . . . on bended knee . . . with acts of service . . . by making music . . . in silence . . . but no matter the how, now we know that humility is the trait which elicits God’s grace – for, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (I Peter 5:5)
Praise the Lord and give thanks in trouble. “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen” might well be apropos to you and your situation. Yet, God has watched (watches) over you like He did David. Remember? As a shepherd lad . . . As a fugitive on the run from King Saul . . . When his own son Absalom rebelled against him and sought to overthrow him.
The message for you and me is this: We too shall overcome our adversaries . . . fears . . . tears - as did David who mastered God’s technique of turning negatives into positives . . . by praising God and giving thanks in the midst of trouble . . . and by trusting the Lord to fulfill His divine purpose in the life of His servant David.
Q: Why not you? God loves you too. God cares about you too. God’s faithful love expressed to you in so many ways endures forever. God our Father in Heaven will never abandon the work He began in you and me when He saved us!
May the song “My Tribute” (composed by Andrea Crouch) be our tribute also to the Lord God our Father whose faithful love endures forever:
“How can I say thanks for the things You have done for me?
“Things so undeserved yet you gave to prove your love for me,
“The voices of a million angels could not express my gratitude,
“All that I am, and ever hope to be, I owe it all to Thee.
“To God be the glory, to God be the glory,
“To God be the glory for the things He has done.
“With His blood He has saved me, with His power He has raised me,
“To God be the glory for the things He has done.
“Just let me live my life, and let it be pleasing, Lord, to Thee.
“And if I gain any praise, let it go to Calvary!
“With His blood He has saved me, with His power He has raised me,
“To God be the glory for the things He has done.” Amen!
