Thankful, Day One-Oh-One

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

When you've done something (almost) every day for four months, it's kind of hard to stop. I began to suspect early on that once I got started blogging the 100th Psalm for 100 days, it would not be an easy thing to walk away from, even in completion. It was with a great sense of fulfillment that I wrote the 100th blog last night, but I wanted to right another one, just one more perhaps, for Day 101.

And this time I'd like to issue a challenge, a clarion call to thanksgiving.

I spent the last 100 (really more like 130) days taking stock of my life through introspection and self-examination. I searched my heart every day, my mind, my memory, my emotions. Some days I liked what I found, other days not so much. But I combed my thoughts for objects of thanksgiving. What was I truly thankful for?

It's been interesting to go back through the blogs and finding recurring themes with each line, each truth contained in Psalm 100. Many times, days or even weeks apart, I wrote almost identical thoughts. I know I gave thanks for some things repeatedly. Like Mom, and God's grace. I have to confess that there were a whole lot of things I wanted to shout from the rooftops, so many things I wanted to thank God for publicly but have refrained out of a sense of modesty or propriety or privacy. There have been many days where I was bursting to tell you all the wonderful things God had done for me, but restrained myself due to the fact that not all things are for public consumption; at least not yet.

And there are lots more things in my life that elicit my gratitude. I believe I have discovered that there is no end of things to thank God for. And that thanks easily turns into praise, and praise in the heart and on the lips gets the attention of God, for He inhabits the praises of His people. He responds to our thanksgiving. He lives in our worship. And then He moves. He moves on our behalf, according to His will, plan and purpose, working all things together for our good and His glory, working all things according to the counsel of His will. For He can do everything, and none of His purposes are withheld from Him.

So here's my challenge: Who among you would consider Psalm 100 for the next 100 days, study it, write about it using its natural outline, and then journal 3 things you are thankful for? You don't even have to post it online; that's simply the way I do things. But how about for yourself? And then see how 100 days of thanks can change your life.

Today, I am thankful for the grace that only God can provide. No one else has the power, authority, or will to forgive my sins, heal my heart, and transform me into His own image and likeness. No one else provided atonement and payment for my sins; no one else took my place and my punishment. No one else loves me enough to do that, but God does!

I'm thankful for the love that only God can provide, the love that stirs in my heart for Him, and the love that I have for other people. I often joke that there are some people whom I don't like, but that I have always managed to love them anyway. Through the years, God has taught me to love unconditionally and self-sacrificially, and that's how I try to live out this love.

I'm thankful for the assurance that only God can provide. He is the one who holds tomorrow, who sees all things past, present and future and knows the beginning from the end. It is by faith that I put my trust, my confidence, and my hope in Him and His word, believing His promises and holding onto them.