Giving Thanks

It's really easy to preach things the Bible says and since as far as I know, almost all of my friends here on Facebook lay claim to being Christian. that's what I try and do. I'm going to throw a scripture out this morning that I know is really hard to do, especially when circumstances are not what we hope for. 

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

I am struggling this morning to do this and I bet many of you are as well. But the Bible is clear; this is God's will for us.

We cannot say we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior and then choose to not seek His will in our lives.

So, today I am going to be thankful. Truth is, I have way more to be thankful for than I can even remember. 

Yet, I know this is hard. I keep a prayer journal and when any of you express prayer needs or sometimes I just see them in your lives, I write them down and try most days to lift them up to our God. This morning as I prayed it became clear, my problems are small and not all that bad compared to the many difficult trials many of you are in right now. Yet, the same call is upon you. be thankful in those circumstances. This is God's will for you.

It has been oft said that there is no safer place, no better place than to be in God's will. So, I encourage each of you, take a few moments to thank God for where He has you today.

How can you do that? 

By faith in him. Don't just believe in Him, believe Him. Open up your Bible and you will see that He is sovereign over all things, even your situation. He i working in them. Hos Word says that, "we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 

It says even if we don't know what to pray the Spirit does. 

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. Romans 8:26-27 

Psalms 34:17-22 tells us this,

When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.Many are the afflictions of the righteous,but the LORD delivers him out of them all.He keeps all his bones;not one of them is broken.Affliction will slay the wicked,and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.The LORD redeems the life of his servants;none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Whatever you face today and tomorrow, God knows, He is working in it and in the right time He will deliver you out of it. 

This might not happen today. Or tomorrow. But we can know for sure that He will deliver us from all this mess and there will come a day when He will wipe away our tears and we shall dwell in the House of the Lord forever.

We must live by faith, not by sight. 

This is how we give thanks in all circumstances. 

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.            Proverbs 3:5-6

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 138

It happens fast. As soon as the turkey is gone and the pie all eaten, Thanksgiving is over and we find ourselves in the rush and frenzy of the Christmas season. If anything should make us thankful, you would think the true meaning of Christmas, the coming of our Lord and Savior, would keep us in a state of thankfulness. But instead we get caught up in the rush of the season. Psalm 138 is a reminder of our need to be ever thankful to our God and to be sure we are offering Him every bit of praise and worship we can muster up.

Psalm 138:1

I will give You thanks with all my heart; I will sing praises to You before the gods.

Commentators disagree on who these “gods” are, but I think J. Vernon McGee gets it right when he says these gods are anything that comes between us and God. In a personal application, here, what this means is that we must remind ourselves that God is above our boyfriend, our Harley, our bass boats, and, anything and everything else, we spend our time with on this earth.

Psalm 138:2
I will bow down toward Your holy temple And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.

God’s Word is proof of who He is. It is our reminder that what God says, He does. We can have faith in Him and His Word. God’s name, who God is, is revealed in His Word. Be thankful for these things.

Psalm 138:3
On the day I called, You answered me; You made me bold with strength in my soul.

God has given us, through Jesus, access to His Throne of Grace. We can go to God in prayer anytime with boldness and an expectation that He hears us. Be thankful for these things.

Psalm 138:4-6
All the kings of the earth will give thanks to You, O LORD, When they have heard the words of Your mouth.  And they will sing of the ways of the LORD, For great is the glory of the LORD. For though the LORD is exalted, Yet He regards the lowly, But the haughty He knows from afar.

It doesn’t matter whether we are a mighty king or a lowly beggar. We can and should be thankful of the truth that Jesus left the Glory of Heaven, to come to earth and become poor and despised. The sinless son of God, became sin for us and took the penalty of our sin at Calvary. Salvation is not reserved for the rich nor the poor, but for all who will come to Him in repentance. And even those who reject Him now, when Christ returns, will see that they should have been thankful and should have followed Christ.

Psalm 138:7
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch forth Your hand against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will save me.

Jesus promised we would have trouble in this life, but He promised He would never leave nor forsake us. Be thankful for this.

Psalm 138:8
The LORD will accomplish what concerns me; Your lovingkindness, O LORD, is everlasting; Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

No matter where you are today, if you are His, you can know He will carry you through. His love never ends. For this we must be thankful.

This morning go to God through Jesus and tell Him your needs, your fears, and even your desires. Then trust Him to provide what is best. And then be thankful to Him. End your prayers with the beginning of this psalm.

I will give You thanks with all my heart; I will sing praises to You before the gods.

God bless all who read His Word.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 136

One week ago today, we celebrated Thanksgiving Day. This morning Psalm 136 is reminder of our need to be thankful every day for the lovingkindness of our wonderful God.

Psalm 136:1-3
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.  Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever.  Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever;

The psalmist goes on in rest of the psalm to offer thanks and praise to God as he provides many reasons the Jews had to praise God. As Christians, we have the same things to be thankful for.

Psalm 136:4-22
To him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who by understanding made the heavens, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who spread out the earth above the waters, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who made the great lights, for his steadfast love endures forever;  the sun to rule over the day, for his steadfast love endures forever;  the moon and stars to rule over the night, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt, for his steadfast love endures forever;  and brought Israel out from among them, for his steadfast love endures forever;  with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who divided the Red Sea in two, for his steadfast love endures forever;  and made Israel pass through the midst of it, for his steadfast love endures forever;  but overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who led his people through the wilderness, for his steadfast love endures forever;  to him who struck down great kings, for his steadfast love endures forever;  and killed mighty kings, for his steadfast love endures forever;  Sihon, king of the Amorites, for his steadfast love endures forever;  and Og, king of Bashan, for his steadfast love endures forever;  and gave their land as a heritage, for his steadfast love endures forever;  a heritage to Israel his servant, for his steadfast love endures forever.

But the greatest expression of God’s love ever given, is the giving of His Son, Jesus, who went to the cross and died a horrible death. It was a death that we deserve. Without Christ, we are in the lowest estate a man can be.

Psalm 136:23-24
It is he who remembered us in our low estate, for his steadfast love endures forever;  and rescued us from our foes, for his steadfast love endures forever;

On Thanksgiving Day, just who do atheist thank? The truth is they are being provided for by the very God they deny, every day they have life.

Psalm 136:25
He who gives food to all flesh, for his steadfast love endures forever.

God’s steadfast love is a perfect love that never ends. We must make every day Thanksgiving Day and praise Him continuously.

Psalm 136:26
Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 100

Ecclesiastes chapter three, tells us that there is a time for everything. In our lives, there will be seasons. We will experience highs and lows, good times and bad times. Even in the best Christian’s life, there will be sin and that sin should break our hearts. But at the end of each day, we should finish up by going to our God in prayer and confessing our sins. God’s mercies are new every morning. Thanks be to Jesus, who endured the cross, we can have full restoration with our Father, through the Son. Every day, every night, we have reason to rejoice if we are His. Psalm 100 is a reminder to us. In it we find at least three commandments, all of which are extremely important to follow.

Psalm 100:1-2

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!  Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!

First of all, we are to be joyful. And because we have His mercy and His grace, in our worship and praise must come service. Serve the Lord with gladness.

Psalm 100:3
Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Then we must know that He is our God and our Lord. We are His people; we are His sheep. He made us. If we are His, then we must submit to Him. Are we willing to submit?

Psalm 100:4
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!

Thirdly, we are to be thankful to Him. In all things, we can be thankful, when we understand He is sovereign and everything that happens in this world, He is working out and in, to our good. See Romans 8:28 if you doubt that.

Why should we do these three things in this psalm?

Psalm 100:5
For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

The call is clear; Be joyful, be submissive, and be thankful. For the Lord is Good. His steadfast love endures forever and His faithfulness to all generations.