Psalm 103:2

Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits ~ Psalm 103:2

 

Sometimes we have to be reminded to give thanks to God. When times are good, it is easy to remember that we owe so much to the great God who gave all to us. It is when our times are tough and life is not going our way that we forget all the benefits God has granted to us. The psalmist is doing some self talk here, and we are reminded that we at times have to do that as well. Being down in the dumps, or mildly depressed is natural and normal, if it lasts for a day or just a few days. When it becomes clinical, and we cannot escape the feelings of darkness, we must recognize we need more help than self talk, but here, this is just what the psalmist needs and it is what he gives to himself. He is calling his own soul to recollection, and he does so emphatically. “Bless the Lord, O my soul…”, do not forget the many favours God has continually brought to your life! He has worked in wondrous ways in the past, and He will do so again. There are many occurrences in life we would rather not encounter when we are in the midst of them, and we desire that we would escape them all. It often is not until we get through to the other side of the experience we discover God had His hand in it, and what we thought was going to harm us, in fact brought about good. God always cares for us, no matter the adversity we encounter, and He will never leave us or forsake us in or out of our trials. They say there is a silver lining in every cloud. Most certainly there is a God above and within us that desires the best for His children. He is our heavenly Father, He sent His Son to pardon our sins, to give us eternal life, and give us an abundant life in the here and now. In the midst of COVID19 we have much to be thankful for – and many are doing just that as they salute the front line workers (Doctors, Nurses, Emergency Crews such as Police, Fire and Ambulance workers), the grocery store attendants, the fast food employees, the person who delivers your morning paper. Much of life has stopped, but much is carrying on because of these people. What else can you give thanks to God for today? Stop, have a good talk with your soul today, and remind yourself to give thanks to God.


Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for your comments

Popular posts from this blog

Romans 8:26

Image
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans ~ Romans 8:26 Many days, many times, I have the words for prayer. It comes forth and flows fairly naturally as I converse with my Lord God. I hope in the God I worship to hear me, and to receive my words, as I pray in the name of Jesus and believe in Him, my intercessor. He is my Living Saviour, my High Priest, standing at the right hand of God the Father. But there are times when my pain has been so deep that my words will not come. There are times when my agony is so piercing that what words I may speak would not be enough. And so, in my deep, black moments, I come before my God and let my darkest emotions erupt in sounds that only He can understand. The Holy Spirit within me cries out in my stead, and He becomes my second intercessor. It is not that He is not there with me in all my prayers, but there are times wh...
Read more

Proverbs 18:2

Image
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in sharing their own opinions ~ Proverbs 18:2 If we are going to understand something, we must fully digest it so that when we speak, we speak with wisdom. When we have only half truths in our mind, our words become empty and senseless. We then puff out air rather than understanding when we speak. A wise person will want to improve their mind through learning in various ways from the world around them. A person who delights in spiritual understanding will find peace and enjoyment in reading the Word of God on a daily basis, and in participating with God’s people in a learning and praising environment – the church! We come together in corporate worship with the understanding that not one of us knows all things, but we bend our mind and heart to learn what God has to show and say to us. A foolish person makes a show of what they “know” to please their friends or to save face in front of them. More often a wise person will hold t...
Read more

Isaiah 43:19

Image
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert ~ Isaiah 43:19 When we meet a challenge, we are often found discouraged, lost, even hopeless. Nothing is working, everything seems to be against us. We do not know how to move forward, so we remain curled up in a ball. Then, a glimmer of light shines through! Hope is regained and movement is stirred within. Don’t we become excited when we begin to feel it? God moves like that. We cannot see our way around it, but He can and does. And He makes a way for us out of the calamity of our fears. It is the feeling of springtime after a long winter, or the smell of fresh cut grass. Life stirs within and we move and we see what God saw all the time – the answer to our dilemma. Our desert place becomes an oasis, and we can do what we are called to do. Something totally unexpected happens, something unheard of, but it begins in our life, and we feel the...
Read more