Thankful, Day Ninety-Five

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

Have I thanked Him enough? Have I been thankful enough? 95 days of blogging, 119 days of this exercise in thanksgiving, and I feel like I am only scratching the surface of being thankful. To tell the truth, it's made me realize how thankless I had been before. I mean, I thanked God for the day (unspecifically), thanked God for the food (out of habit), thanked God for His blessings (in general), thanked God for His love and forgiveness (which I am often in need of), thanked God for...and then I was usually asleep. It's not that I was ungrateful; it's not really that I took His goodness for granted. It's just that I never really took the time to make myself aware of all His detailed and specific blessings, and to be specifically and repeatedly thankful.

I truly hope that my life will never be the same as a result of these 100 days of thanks. I'm truly thankful for all the things He has done for me, all the things He has given me, all the things He has forgiven and forgotten. I'm thankful for His promises and His provision, for His guidance and His direction, for His constant presence and blessed assurance. I'm thankful for His Word, for His voice, for His hand at work in my life. I'm thankful for His Son Jesus Christ, who took my place on the cross, who took my sin upon Himself, and died so that I might live. I'm thankful for the name given to Him which is above every name, the name through which my prayers are answered, at which demons tremble, every knee bows and every tongue confesses. I'm thankful for the Holy Ghost, who is God's presence in me, power and comfort and teaching and correction.

As a result of this exercise, my heart has been changed, my mind renewed, my hope restored. I have experienced healing from hurts and the restoration of things I thought lost for good. My faith in God, in His power and His promises, has been revived. I have seen Him work miracles, performing through His sovereignty in moments what my hand could not accomplish ever. I have witnessed His hand in changing circumstances and hearts, in providing for me in ways I could not have imagined, in doing what no other power could do. Is it really all because of my giving of thanks?

Perhaps this is why the Bible says:

Rejoice always.

Pray without ceasing.

In everything give thanks.

Be anxious for nothing,

but in everything, with prayer and supplication

with thanksgiving

let your requests be made known unto God.

And the peace that passes all understanding

will guard your heart and mind.

Give thanks to the LORD,

Our God and King,

His love endures forever!

I'm thankful today for the lessons I have learned, for the things God has taught me through His servants, through His Word, and through His Spirit. Through them I have (hopefully) learned perseverance, which builds character, which produces hope that does not disappoint. I've made it safe thus far with God; by grace I'm gonna make it safe home.

I'm thankful today for the lessons I am learning, even though they are hard. The reasons for my testing and my trial are not always apparent to my weak and feeble eyes, but I just keep plugging along, because I know that God is doing something special. If I don't faint in the day of adversity, if I do not flag or fail, if I weary not in well-doing, if I don't lose heart. I have put my hand to the plow; I will not look back.

I'm thankful for the lessons I have yet to learn, which lie still ahead on the road to glory. I wish I already knew everything, having attained perfection and grace, having reached the heights of knowledge and wisdom and understanding. Unfortunately, I will attain such stature when I am dead, resurrected and glorified. Until then, I'm going to go on with Jesus, and I will go on to the end.