Thankful, Day Eleven

Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!

Serve the Lord with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.

Know that the Lord, he is God;

It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;

We are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

For the Lord is good;

His mercy is everlasting,

And His truth endures to all generations.

Psalm 100, NKJV

Thanksgiving. That's what this whole exercise is about. Not the holiday, but the attitude. I believe thanksgiving, being thankful, is a fruit of the Spirit, one characteristic of being like Christ. It's a choice, and should be a practice. Instead of so much griping and complaining for what we lack, we should spend more time being appreciative of what we have. It's taken ten days, but this Psalm is beginning to get IN me.

Enter His gates, it says. That used to mean the temple, but since today we are the temple, where do we go into His presence where we can express our thanksgiving?

I'm thankful that when I go to church, whenever I meet with other Christians, I can enter into the presence of the Lord. Because Jesus promised us that wherever we gathered in His name, even if it was just two or three of us, He would be there with us. Jesus promised that He would never leave us, nor forsake us. That He would be with us always, even to the end of the age!

I'm thankful that whenever I praise Him, wherever I am, whatever I'm going through, He is present. Because the Psalmist wrote that He inhabits the praises of His people. Put another way, He is enthroned in our praises; He sits upon them. When I'm feeling far away from God, first of all I need to realize that God is not the one who has moved. I need to take steps back to Him in praise and petition, and I know that I will find Him. As the old timers used to say, He is as close as the mention of His name.

I'm thankful that when I shut myself into a private place of prayer, He is there with me. Because His Spirit lives and breathes and moves in me, giving me new and everlasting life. When I call upon Him, he hears my prayers, he cares for my needs, and he answers my cry.

Thank you Lord, that wherever I am, there You are, and I can enter your gates anytime I want to.