Category: gratefulness

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Magnify the Lord!

Magnify the Lord

Ps 65-67, 69-70 Where do you go when life is hard or when life is pleasant? Are you a waffling up and down person, praising one day and grumbling the next? The psalmist reflects that even when life is hard, he can and will choose to praise God. Ps 65:4 “How blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near.” Ps 66:2-3 “Sing the glory of His Name, Make His praise glorious! Say to God, “How awesome are your works.”  Ps 69:16 “Lord, your lovingkindness is good!” Ps 70:4 “Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you, and let those who love your salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.”

When we take time to praise God no matter how life is, we can be grateful, and we can take time to praise God for all His benefits and blessings.

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Doing the Right Thing…

1Chron 18: The Heart of David and My Heart
David is the new king but still waging war near and far. If the Israelites had been wise, they would not have rejected God as their King. Imagine a world in which God is the King. He promised He would cleanse the land, but now it is laid at the feet of men. The tragedy is that many are affected, and so it continues today.

After the death of Saul and Jonathan, David wonders if there is any left of the house of Saul. Could it be that God has preserved even one? Do I look for others in my family who may be alive to honor? (Yes, I did, but when I found them was told never to call, write or come for a visit. Sadness overload with no reasons given) 🙁 “tears”

But, in David’s case, God has saved one individual: Mephishobeth, Jonathan’s son, who lives in Lo Debar with a man named Ziba. David seeks him out and promises him blessing upon blessing. Imagine being Mephishobeth 🙂 upon hearing that the king requests your presence and then hearing that your future is protected!!!!!

David is an example of one who chose to administer justice and kindness to those who have suffered needlessly because of the choice made by others.

Isn’t that what Jesus did for you and me? Do I/we do the same?

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What is the point…?

Ps 107 What do you see when you look back at your life? Is a life filled with the pleasantness of the goodness of God, or do you see suffering? What is the point of each? When we are filled and see the hand of God of blessing, do we stop and praise Him? On the other hand, when we are suffering, do we also stop and praise God? What is the point of each?

To the one, it is a gift to the God we serve and bless and share that with others. It is God’s gift to others that we lift up and praise His Name. But, to the one who is suffering, how do we use that to glorify His Name? Do we stop and give Him praise or do we grumble and complain?

The psalmist looks back and sees where God has blessed, and he also sees where God has allowed suffering. What is the point of each? Each can be used to share His blessing, for good or bad. In either state, we are to offer Him praise and blessing.

The key is found in Ps 107:15 “Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness and for the amazing things He has done for his people.’

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The Cost of Complaining

be ye thankful

Num 11-13 Where has God supplied your “every…thing?” Are you grateful, or are you still seeking more and more to satisfy today? That is the problem the Israelites had. They were seeking more and more and more, not realizing that what is given today, like the manna, only lasts for today. Tomorrow you need to go and gather more. You don’t save the leftovers from today for tomorrow because they will stink and rot. No, you need to go and gather each day which is a principle we need to glean. We glean today in our reading for today but not tomorrow. We must glean and gather truth each day. That is so contrary to how we think about our reading and meditation. It is for today to be gathered and rejoice in what God has given.

The Israelites missed that principle, and we do as well, and that is where complaining and grumbling come in. We fail to be grateful for the manna of today. In fact, it isn’t the manna but the quality of what God has given. We want meat, but we fail to realize that God doesn’t provide meat until we have savored and chewed on the manna thanking Him for that.

Today be grateful for the manna and chew on that.

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The Price of Forgiveness

Jesus is the perfect atonement

Lev 14-15 When we sin, intentionally or unintentionally, everyone suffers! The price for forgiveness or cleansing is very steep. In the case of the Israelites, it was the cost of an unblemished lamb or turtledoves. No matter what was given, it was costly to the sinner. We don’t have to wonder why because the life is in the blood. “Life for life.” [Lev 17:14] In Hebrews, we read: “without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.”[Heb 9:22]

How thankful I am that Christ gave himself to pay the price of my sin. “By his will, we have been made holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” [Heb 10:10]

Today as you and I go about our work, may we be ever so conscious of what we do, what we say, and our thoughts. May we be holy as He is holy.

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Keep that love fresh!

Keep that love fresh

Ephesians 1-3 Paul wrote to encourage the Ephesians to stand fast. About 25 yrs. later under the inspiration of Christ, John wrote to encourage these precious believers to return to their first love. Paul told them they were saints, set apart for God, faithful in Christ. John said you were faithful and enduring. What had happened? Why did you lose that first initial love and depart from your first love? John’s words from Christ remind us that even though we may be earnestly and steadfastly faithful in our works, if not done with love, it is as if we were a gonging cymbal. [1Cor 13:1]

Paul reminded them that their great gift of God’s forgiveness of sin was given to redeem them from their trespasses and sins. It was done through the blood sacrifice of Christ. Now they were forgiven their trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.

Just like the Ephesians, we were chosen before the world was founded. He predestined us to be His children because of His will’s pleasure. Peter emphasized this same point: his divine power has bestowed on us everything necessary for life and godliness. [2Pet 1:3]

Keep that love fresh!

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Freely received, freely given.

donations

1Cor 9 You may not know this fact, but all of the materials on Bible.org are free to anyone. Only three out of eight employees are salary based; all others, including this author, are full-time…get that… full-time volunteers. You might wonder why? The answer comes from the words of Paul to the Corinthians:  “What then is my reward? That when I/we preach the gospel I/we may offer the gospel free of charge, and so not make full use of my/our rights in the gospel.” [1Cor 9:18]

Bible.org is not only volunteer-based; all monies that are received are used for this work strictly by your donations. We are grateful beyond words for you who choose sacrificially to donate to this ministry. Truly Paul’s words ring true: “For since I am/we are free from all I can/we can make myself a slave to all, in order to gain even more people.” [1Cor 9:19]

If you are looking for an end-of-year place to donate, please would you pray to include Bible.org in your donations? It takes hours and much planning to bring these materials to you freely. Again, Paul reminds us why he is, and we are volunteers in the Lord’s ministry: “I/We do all things because of the gospel so that I/we can be a participant in it.” [1Cor 9:23]

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Rewards and Grace

Grace is what we do not deserve

Matt 20 As we move through life, we seem to think we deserve this or that. In reality, we deserve nothing, for we are a part of the evil and adulterous generation, as Jesus said to a listening audience. But, when God’s grace appeared, and we accepted that grace as our salvation, we were given far more than we deserved. We all deserve the wrath of God, but Christ came to pay our sin penalty. Why, then, are we jealous when we see others gain more notoriety or more fame, or rewards? We deserve hell, but we have been given grace. That is the point of the parable Jesus was teaching. He revealed the true heart issue is one of jealousy, not gratefulness. 

When we enter heaven’s gate, we will be placed in line to receive our rewards. Some behind us will have received God’s grace millennia ago, while others are standing before us, having accepted Christ on their deathbed and had no service, just like the thief on the cross. He did not belong to a church, had no baptism experience, and did no service in Christ’s kingdom, but Christ told him, today you will be with me in Paradise.

Today may we be grateful for every avenue of service God has given us and every reward, whether it be little or plenty.

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Celebrations of Blessings!

Count your blessings

Zechariah 14 The Feast of Booths
What celebration brings joy to your heart and mind? Is it Thanksgiving or Christmas, or another? For Israel, it was and is the Feast of Booths/Sukkah to commemorate the release from Egyptian slavery thousands of years ago. It is a celebration of rejoicing over God’s provision. Long ago, God’s command was to return to Jerusalem and build “shelters” to sleep and live in for a week. Then, in the presence of the Temple, the religious leaders would read the Torah.

Imagine yourself sitting and sleeping in an “outdoor tent” and using this time to read about this feast in Leviticus. How might that impact your heart and mind?

Today, we celebrate a similar feast called Thanksgiving. At that time, do we stop and recall God’s blessings? Do we thank God for His provision this past year and look forward to this new year? Do we, like many Israelites, read not only Leviticus but also the entire book of Deuteronomy?

The last part of this celebration was for the adults to perform a ceremony to bless the children. First, the adults make a tent over the heads of the children and recite Genesis 49 as a prayer of blessing.

How do you celebrate God’s precious blessings to you?

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Count Your Blessings!

keep a diary

Ps 106-108 Forgetting and Remembering

The psalmist reminded us yesterday in Ps 103 that we have short memories. It is like that part of our brain goes to sleep and forgets the blessings God has bestowed upon us. Today’s reading is continuing that same theme.

Ps 106:7 they failed to remember (your many acts of love)…is this true of you and I as well?

Ps 106:13 they quickly forgot (what he had done)…are we guilty of this as well?

Ps 106:21 they forgot God their Savior…”OUCH”

But it gets worse: vs 24-25 they despised, they believed not, they murmured,

The Holy Spirit is given to us as our teacher. He uses spiritual markers in our life so that we might remember and give praise to God. He recalls to our memory the wonderful works God has done. Where today do you and I need to give God the praise He richly deserves?

Perhaps we might need a helpful nudge to remember. Do as I do, try journaling. Try writing where God has blessed you this day and the day before. Remember the hymn “Count your blessings, name them one by one and you will see what God has done.”

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