"Make a joyful shout to the Lord all ye lands!
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing."
(Psalm 100:2)
Lately I have found myself coming into the presence
of the Lord with singing.
I was not gifted (as some) with the ability to sing,
but within my heart there sings a melody.
I have always loved singing to the Lord
and making a joyful noise ~
But these past few weeks it has been the desire
of my heart to sing unto the Lord rather than speak
the words of my heart during my quiet time of worship.
With this different way of meeting with my Savior,
I have found a greater sense of thankfulness
that is overflowing from within my heart.
There is a nearness to my God that seems to wrap
an awareness of His gentle love around me.
God's presence is real..."I am the sheep of His pasture,
and His love and mercy is everlasting."
That is praiseworthy!
"Be thankful to Him, and bless His name."
(Psalm 100:4)
Oh... that is the sincerest desire of my heart.
A heart of thanksgiving certainly draws one closer to God, doesn't it?
We have so much to be thankful for,
and the Psalms are a beautiful expression
of overflowing thankfulness to God.
This time of year and every day of the year
should bring us to the place of allowing the Spirit
of God to cultivate in us a heart of praise
and thanksgiving for all that He has done.
Psalm 103 is another great Psalm of Praise.
In verses 20-22 even the heavens and the earth
sing His praises because of the good things that he has done.
We should do no less.
**~~**
I would encourage you to;
"Bless the Lord O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits."
(Psalm 103:2)
Our praise journals should be overflowing as we call to mind
the great things He has worked on our behalf.
Praise His Holy Name!
**~~**
Today I am reminded of God's grace, mercy, love
and goodness in all things, yes, in all things.
On November 25th we, as a family would celebrate
my dear and precious dads birthday.
He would have been 79 years old today.
Our Thanksgiving celebrations
were many times centered around his birthday
as it often fell on Thanksgiving day.
This year we as a family will experience our 1st
with out his presence.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!
WE LOVE AND MISS YOU!
WE LOVE AND MISS YOU!
Through the tears of heartache as we miss this great man
we can still sing praises from our hearts
with a grateful spirit because of God's goodness.
As I was reading Psalm 103 and giving praise
to my Holy God for His many benefits,
I was struck with a greater sense of gratitude for where
my dad will be spending his birthday this year,
in the presence of God.
O bless His name!
**~~**
You see...God "heals all our diseases." (Verse 3b)
God is the ultimate healer of our illnesses.
While here on this earth dad lived with Polio
from the age of two and a half,
a disease that crippled him and brought decay.
In his later years heart disease over took him,
to the point of ending his life.
In May of this year God called my dad home,
and according to the first part of verse 3 in Psalm 103
it is the foundation for my praise.
"Who forgives all your iniquities."
At the cross our greatest problem was dealt with
by God Himself, our sin problem.
My dad is celebrating his salvation through Christ
in the presence of his Holy and Righteous Savior,
as redeemed and healed both from his earthly diseases
and his spiritual disease.
God was faithful and forgave dads iniquities
when dad called upon the Lord for his salvation.
"For whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved."
(Romans 10:13)
That is what I celebrate today!
With a heart full of praise (and tears as I miss dad)
I will sing out to the Lord with a heart of gratitude
because I know dad is with his Savior celebrating
with a new and healed body.
That puts joy in my heart,
where in this world we endure much heartache.
"O give thanks to the Lord!
Call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples!
Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;
Talk of all His wondrous works!
Glory in His name;
Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord."
(Psalm 105:1-3)
Amen
Let this be our prayer
Be Thankful
