Listen:
“I will give thanks to You Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonderful deeds”. (Psalm 9:1 NIV)
Reflect:
Recently, my children and I celebrated 10 years of living in Geneva. We’d only been living here three months when our whole world was turned upside down. Our future was uncertain. Life was scary and hope was sinking.
In spite of all the pain and devastation, it was clear that God was working things out for our good, we hung on tightly to Jeremiah 29:11. It wasn’t always natural to give thanks throughout that storm, but something deep on the inside of me knew, that praising God and remembering all He had done before, was the key to getting to the other side, to safety, and so we did.
The Apostle Paul tells us in Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God”.
In this passage we see that thanksgiving precedes the miracle. It’s not only for after, but before and during the trial, it’s constant and should be a way of life for everyone who believes. Remembering God’s goodness and grace is reason enough for us to live lives of gratitude, openly declaring and telling of His goodness, in how we love others, how we worship and how we respond to the storms in our lives.
I heard a pastor say once that giving thanks is expressing our love to God and that gratitude produces worship. Let’s be encouraged today, to praise and give thanks before the breakthrough and in the middle of the storm, let’s give thanks simply for who He is.
Let’s raise our hallelujah!
Prayer of Response:
“Father, thank You for all that you are, thank You for the miracle of salvation and knowing you and your amazing grace. Thank You that you are Provider, Comforter, Defender and a Miracle Working God. May our lives tell of the wonderful deeds You have done in, through and for each of us, like a song of continuous praise and thanksgiving, as we express our love to You.”
—Submitted by Samantha Muller
Single mom living in Geneva, Switzerland with my 21 year old university going daughter and about a 20 minute train ride to my 25 year old son, making me a very young half empty nester. A lover of Jesus with a desire to allow His will to forever be done in my life and to live fully on purpose for Him pointing others to His saving grace.
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