Friday, November 19, 2021
Praise be to the LORD, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song. The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever. Psalms 28:6-9
A Thankful Perspective
Looking back over some of the devotionals we have posted over the years, I came across this one. Even though it was first posted 3 years ago, I felt like it would mean something completely different now, with all that has happened in the last 2 years. Trials and hardships change us, and they change our perspective. We learn and grow from them, and we begin to see what is truly valuable and hold those things a little closer to our hearts. Even in the most desperate times in our lives, there is always something we can be thankful for. We just have to have eyes that see. I bet when you read this and think about what you are thankful for, your answers will be a lot different than they were 3 years ago. Open your eyes to all He has done for you and enjoy a fresh perspective on your grateful heart.
Thanksgiving opens the door to God's blessings - A grateful heart changes everything. Having a grateful heart enables you to recognize God's presence in your life.
Thanksgiving allows us to see our delightful inheritance in the Lord. The psalmist writes, Surely, I have a delightful inheritance. Psalms 16:6; You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. OLORD my God, I will give you thanks forever. Psalms 30:11-12 NIV.
Giving thanks to God in difficult times is essential because it gives us the ability to see life from an eternal perspective. - I will praise the LORD, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set he LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Psalms16:7-8 David, who wrote Psalms, understood that his future held greater blessings than anything he could hope to enjoy in the present. David took courage that even though his body may end up in a grave that this was not the end. God would give him eternal pleasures at his right hand.
The pressures of the present are often staggering but knowing that the Lord delivers us out of the stress of the moment is the greatest encouragement for the present. David didn’t just think about the struggles of the present, he remembered what God had done in the past too. He remembered the blessings and all the times God had delivered him and Israel. He had an eternal perspective. Having an eternal perspective gives us hope and courage to see the moment as part of God’s wondrous works for our lives. Knowing God's faithfulness to his people in the past and understanding His eternal blessing to be ours in the future helps us set a course for our lives in the present.
Today be thankful for some of the unconventional Thanksgiving things in your life. Be thankful for the hard times and how God uses this to grow you and also how He delivers us through these times. Remember your past and all God has done for you, how He has been faithful. Thank Him for turning mourning to dancing. Be thankful for the promise of eternal life – a royal inheritance - and His never-ending presence in your life.
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:28-29 (NIV)
