Have you ever cried out to the Lord in desperation for something, and in His faithfulness, He answers you, and instead of thanking God right away, you call or text your friends to share the news? I know I am guilty of that many, many times over. I don’t think it’s wrong to share good news with the people who have been praying with you for things, but I find myself over and over not spending enough time thanking the one who made it happen. I remind myself a lot of the Israelites. God showed himself faithful to them over and over… and over again. They would be faced with insurmountable odds and God would deliver them, but as soon as the next challenge faced them, they wished they were back in Egypt as slaves.
I recently came across this passage in Psalms 50 when I was reading my Bible.
“I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer. But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens. For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills….Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High. Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory…..But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me…”
Psalms 50:8-10, 14-15, 23 NLT
Did you catch that? God is saying that more than the traditional sacrifices that His people offered to Him, He really wanted His people to offer up the sacrifice of thankfulness more than anything. And when they do remember what He’s done and give thanks for it, He hears them when they cry out to Him and rescues them.
This reminds me of another story in the Bible about King Jehoshaphat. In 2 Chronicles 20:1-25, we read the story of how the people of Judah under King Jehoshaphat were about to be attacked by their enemies and certain destruction was coming upon them. They felt they had no way to win this battle. So Jehoshaphat declared a fast for the people of Judah, and they sought the Lord’s direction. Scripture says that they prayed and sang the song “Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever”. It wasn’t a strong rally-the-troops kind of battle cry song that they sung. But instead it was a song of thanksgiving. What happened next is nothing short of God showing off how awesome He is. The enemies coming against the people of Judah got confused and started fighting each other. When the people of Judah emerged, they found that their enemies defeated each other and the people of Judah didn’t even have to fight that day. They went from being fearful of being annihilated one day, to singing a song of thanksgiving and seeing God defeat their enemies the next day.
As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day today, and many of us pause and recount what God has done for us, let’s make it our life song to be thankful. Even if you are in a difficult season of your life now, there is always something to be thankful for. I know that God has been good to me and I know that you will find that He has been good to you to. ~ Vijoy
