A Psalm for Thanksgiving. Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth. Serve the LORD with gladness; come before Him with joyful singing. Know that the LORD Himself is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100:1-5
This week of Thanksgiving we are looking at Psalm 100, a Thanksgiving Psalm. In it are five Thanksgiving commands. Yesterday we learned about the first two commands - Shout for joy to the Lord and Serve the Lord with gladness.
The third command is: "Come before Him with joyful songs." Another passage says, "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." And that I can do.
Have you noticed? In these first 3 commands, God has said, "I want you to be happy. Shout with joy, serve with gladness and come with joyful songs." Now just take a moment and consider the people around you during worship. Do they look happy? Or are they just sitting there with frowns on their faces? The Psalmist says, "Come before Him and serve Him and sing His praise with joy in your heart." Join in the joy of worship and add your voice. It pleases God.
The fourth command is: "Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture."
God took every bone, every joint and He welded them together with sinews and muscles and covered them with skin. He gave us eyes that see, brains that think, and fingers that can pick things up. WE can feel, sense and respond to creation and others. God made us, inside and out. He made you the way He wanted you to be and He made me the way He wanted me to be. That is a mystery, isn't it? Someplace along the way He had you in mind and He made you.
And He is still making us. That is important, too. He's not content with the unfinished product. He's not satisfied with your temper. He's not satisfied with the weak areas of your life where you are giving in to temptation. So He's still making us; He's still working on our lives. God is our maker and we are created in His image. Therefore give Him thanks for who you are.
Then the psalmist says, "We are His people, the sheep of His pasture." Most of us want to be shepherds, not sheep. "It's not any fun being sheep," we say. But the problem is, we don't know where the still waters and green pastures are. So, every time we go out searching for them, we invariably end up in the far country. He is saying, "You be the sheep. Let me be the shepherd, and I will lead you beside the still waters and the green pastures. Just let me lead."
Knowing that the Lord is my Shepherd makes me thankful for His guidance and care! Today take time to thank God for His leadership in your life. Thank Him for being the Shepherd to you and for the privilege of being in his flock.
Scripture to Claim:
"And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him." Co1.3:17