Ways to be thankful

Scripture Verse that Caught my attention Today: Psalm 145:10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your faithful shall bless you.

Observation: The psalmist poetically sings of a day when all of creation praises its creator.

Application: That will be quite a day! For all practical purposes, many people do not live their lives truly in thanksgiving to God—even a good number of us who spend an hour each week in a pew or preaching from a pulpit. I mean, we have moments or periods during the week when we are thankful, but much of the time we’re just coping with life like everyone else—getting up, dealing with changes in the schedule, handling situations that arise, grabbing something to eat, glancing through the news and the e-mails, “liking” someone’s comment on a social network, remembering (way later than we intended in the evening) that we need to throw in another load of laundry and then being forced to stay up at least long enough to then put it in the dryer, etc. We deal with life as it comes and try to remember to thank God for it later.

Interestingly enough, the Psalmist doesn’t declare that creation will constantly give praise to God. That vision will come years later from the writer of Revelation when speaking of the second coming of Christ. Until then it seems to me that we will continue to live in a state of periodic (rather than perpetual) praise and thanksgiving to God. It’s not the perfect way to be, but since even life itself is a gift from God, maybe just living and embracing life is a form of thanks in and of itself.

Prayer: Lord, help us to be more mindful and thankful for your gifts and your benefits. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Readings today included: Ezekiel 38-39, Psalm 145, and Revelation 20)
PS: I remembered, after devotions, that today marks the official 20th year of my ordination. Milestones are neat and, yet, they are also just another great day and opportunity to live life.