“Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful. He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever. He has shown his people the power of his works, in giving them the inheritance of the nations. The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy; they are established forever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness. He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name! The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!” Psalm 111
After typing that Psalm in I needed to read it again for myself. I need to constantly be reminded of the call to praise the LORD. I need to be reminded over and over again of His faithfulness to me and my family. I am thankful, but I am too often prone to complain about the things I don’t like and that leads to a half-hearted thankfulness in my life. Lord I thank you for these many things…and then I stumble into grumbling.
We are just a little over a week from celebrating Thanksgiving. Are we beginning, even now, to take the time to consider what we are really thankful for? We don’t have to wait until next week. Thanksgiving should be a normal part of our live and not a once a year event. Let us recount the many blessings we have, even with some of our struggles and all of the hardships of the year.
Verse 1 speaks of giving thanks in the company of the upright, in the congregation. I am very very thankful for my church family. All of you are such a great blessing to me and to my family. We consider ourselves blessed and we continue to pray for more normalcy in the days and weeks to come.
Verse 4 speaks of God’s grace and His mercy. As we consider our salvation everything else pales in comparison. No matter what we face in this life we know that we will be face to face with our Lord at death and that Christ is coming again for His people. It is in that glorious hope that we rejoice.
Verse 5 speaks of God’s provision. Not only food ‘our daily bread’ but so many of the things that God provides for us.
And without going through each verse in this short weekly thought (I’ll let you do that on your own), I do want to pause again this week and simply give God thanks. I encourage you to re-read this Psalm. May God encourage you as we carry on together as the body of Christ.
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