June 22 – Singing Does Worship

“Sing to the Lord, all the earth;
    Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
Tell of His glory among the nations,
    His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.” – 1 Chronicles 16:23-24 (NASB)

Today’s passage is found in 1 Chronicles and was ordered by David to become part of the dedication of the newly refurbished Tent of Meeting or also known as the Tabernacle during the 40 years of Israel’s wandering in the dessert. Since the settlement and partition of the Promised Land to the 12 tribes of Jacob the Ark of God (also known as the Ark of the Covenant) had been kept safe in various places. David brought the Ark into Jerusalem which would become the site of Solomon’s temple. This hymn of thanksgiving is actually a compilation of passages from other psalms, which suggests the priority of those psalms for worship and thanksgiving. David, an experienced song writer must have excerpted parts from his earlier poetry and woven them together into this beautiful piece. The portion from verses 7-22 are from Psalm 105:1-6 where the psalmist began with a call to praise and rejoice because of the Lord’s many wonderful acts and His holy name. His name means His attributes that are revealed to us. Like Israel all who believe should depend on the Lord (look and seek His face), remembering His miraculous works.

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November 28 – Wholehearted

“I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. - Psalm 9:1 (ESV)

In the crush of our overly-commercialized world, it does not take long for the spirit of Thanksgiving to fade. Our attention turns to other intentions and desires. We’ve  mentioned previously, every day is a good day to give our expressions of thanks to God. We can make every day a day of thanksgiving. When we take the time to consider what God has done for us and for all who need salvation, we have much to be thankful for. Today's verse is from Psalm 9 and reminds us that true thanks that is pleasing to the Lord comes from within ourselves. It comes from our heart and our whole heart should be involved. We can express thanksgiving with our lips. If we are not focused on God, we can really say the words without our hearts being involved. Today the verse reminds us that true thanks to the Lord requires all our heart. Let’s do so today as you gather with family or friends or if you are by yourself, you can still give thanks to the Lord with all your heart. He knows you and He is with you today so be thankful for that blessing and promise.

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November 17 – Profound and Great

“For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done. How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts!” Psalm 92:4-5 (NIV)

We have chosen these verses especially because of the words where the psalmist is worshipping God for His thoughts. We don’t know God’s thoughts as a mind-reader because no one can know God that way. But the psalmist still knows that God’s thoughts are marvelous. He says, “how profound your thoughts?” What was it that made him marvel at the depth of God’s thoughts? In his first words he was happy about what God was doing. He found God’s works to be great and wonderful and it gave him joy. Sometimes we are tempted to ask why God should allow something difficult to happen in our lives. We struggle with the consequences of attacks that come at us from our enemy. “Why us O Lord? Why did this happen now?” We do not understand and we question His goodness. But God is good all the time and even though he allows some things which test our faith to happen, He never deserts us. He thinks about us and he keeps track. How much better to trust His goodness and know the His thoughts, though deep are wonderful. We trust Him.

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January 13 – What To Seek

“Sing to the Lord, all the earth; Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.”  - 1 Chronicles 16:23-24 (NASB)

Our verse today comes from the song sung on the day King David brought the Ark of the Covenant of God into Jerusalem. The whole context is important because it provides an understanding of how God was honored and worshiped because of the “wonderful deeds which He has done,” (v.12).  It is an example for us to remember to praise the Lord with thankfulness for all he has done for us.  And it is also a reminder of God’s purpose in creation and salvation that He is to be glorified. Our promise today can be seen throughout the song (v. 8-36) as it affirms God’s good work that He has done. And, He promises to continue to do for us out of His lovingkindness which is forever.  We read this affirmation, “Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad.”  Let’s focus on that today, being glad because of the wonders and love bestowed upon us who “seek the Lord and His strength and seek His face continually.” (v. 11)

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October 26 – Close To Us

“We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks, For Your name is near; Men declare Your wondrous works.”  Psalm 75:1 (NASB)

What is it that we give thanks to God for in our day to day life?  The psalmist, in this verse gives thanks to God because His name is near.  That seems a bit unusual, doesn't it?  We believe and know that God is near to each of us but what does it mean that His name is near?  It is a promise that we can trust in as we read the next expression in the verse which refers to God's works.  His deeds which are wonderful,  are all done in His name.  As we learn and hear about them, we share the things God is doing, and we realize that His name is truly close to us.  We respond with thanksgiving to God.  How wonderful to know and trust that God's name is near and if His name is near, we know that He is near.  We are encouraged to speak out, to declare what we know.  “Thank you Lord for all the wonderful deeds You are doing,” becomes our response to this promise.

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July 21 – Understanding The Way

“Cause me to understand the way of your precepts, that I may meditate on your wonderful deeds.”  Psalm 119:27 (NIV)

We are continuing to focus on verses out of Psalm 119.  The psalmist realized that God had given His people the Scriptures to teach them many things they needed to know.  We also realize that God has, in love, preserved the Scriptures for us to read because He knows our need as well.  We need God's help to understand what He wants to teach us in the Bible. When He teaches us we need to give real thought to His teaching.  We need to do as the psalmist did. We need to meditate on God's Word.  Meditating is not a mystical practice as it is so often portrayed in stories, movies and on television.  Meditating is taking time to focus on a smaller portion of the Bible and think about what it means, what it means to you personally, and how to respond and apply what it says to do.  We will find as the psalmist did that He is a wonderful God and He does wonderful things. God promises to help us understand His Word.

Notes on Psalm 119

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November 28 – From Inside

“I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.” Psalm 9:1 (NIV)

As we mentioned previously, everyday is a good day to give our expressions of thanks to God. Today's verse is from Psalm 9 and reminds us that true thanks that is pleasing to the Lord comes from our inner being. It comes from the heart and our whole heart should be involved. We can express thanksgiving with our lips. We can really say the words without our hearts being involved. Today the verse reminds us that true thanks to the Lord requires all our heart. Do so today as you gather with family or friends or if you are by yourself, you can still give thanks to the Lord with all your heart. He knows you and He is with you today so be thankful for that blessing and promise. 

November 25 – Thanks Giving Every Day

“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.” Psalm 107:21 (NIV) 

This week we have celebrated Thanksgiving Day in the USA. To the north in Canada, our friends have celebrated Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October. But whenever we pause for a national day of thanksgiving, it is good to think of the real reason we do that. We have reason to make every day a day of Thanksgiving.  Today's verse is just one of many that focuses on giving thanks to the Lord. He is certainly worthy of our thanks. He has done so much for each of us. He has loved us and because of His love He has brought us into His family. Some of us will be together with our earthly family and we should remember God's help for each of our loved ones and let's be thankful that God has brought us into His family.

November 7 – Love Without Fail

“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind,” Psalm 107:8 (NIV) 

This verse suggests, very directly, that we give thanks to the Lord. When we consider that God's love for us never fails us does that not bring a sense of thanksgiving to our heart and mind? And not only is his love unfailing, what God does for his creation, for you and for me, is wonderful deeds.  Whatever deed God does for us is wonderful and for our good. Thinking about these truths should fill us with love for God and cause us to be thankful in our words and deeds and in the attitude of our lives. Being thankful for His love is how we bless God because we are returning to Him sincere acknowledgment of his goodness to us.

November 17

“For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done. How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts!” Psalm 92:4-5 (NIV)

I have read these verses especially because of the words where the psalmist is worshipping God for His thoughts. He says, “how profound your thoughts?” What was it that made him marvel at the depth of God’s thoughts?  In his first words he was happy about what God was doing. He found God’s works to be great and wonderful and it gave him joy. Sometimes we are tempted to ask why God should allow something to happen in our lives. We cannot understand and we question His goodness. How much better to trust His goodness and know the His thoughts, though deep are wonderful. We trust Him.