Psalm 136:1-9 (NIV)
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever. to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever. Who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever. Who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever, who made the great lights—His love endures forever. The sun to govern the day, His love endures forever. The moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.
Why do we bother asking our kids, “What do you say?” when they receive a gift or a compliment? Why do we want our children to be grateful? It’s a fact that we want them to learn to say thank you. We want them to be grateful.
Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
Thankfulness and gratitude are ways to open your heart. Gratitude trains your brain to be joyful. That’s why we bother to teach our kids. It’s good to celebrate and be thankful to God.
The Psalms are filled with joy and gratitude to God. I’m actually posting the Book of Psalms on Facebook right now. I love it. People would sing and repeat the Psalms. The Psalms are a message of God’s steadfast love.
Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash
The word hesed is a Hebrew word. It means much more than just kindness, loyalty, or faithfulness. It goes much deeper than that. It describes a deep covenantal loving-kindness. It means a steadfast love or a covenant loyalty. Here’s the best part. This is a love that’s not based on the recipient’s worth. It’s based on the person giving it. How the giver demonstrates it through consistent action, commitment, and mercy. Wait for it…even when the recipient isn’t worthy of it.
In the Book of Micah, it asks, “What does the Lord expect of us?” Well, God expects us to walk humbly with Him, to love mercy, and to do justly. Here it is in Micah 6:8: He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
God’s love is a sticky love. It won’t let you go. But sometimes we feel like God has abandoned us. He doesn’t hear us. He doesn’t care. Here’s the good news: God is steadfast even if we feel He isn’t. His steadfast love endures forever. Why do we say thank you to God? Because of His steadfast love.
Paul went to preach in Athens. There he saw the Parthenon, which was built 500 years before Jesus walked the earth. The Greeks built it to honor the goddess, Athena. Paul must have been in awe of the temple. Paul had a problem, however, with the temple. He knew that in Christianity you can’t have a God who dies. This is a stumbling block for both Jews and Gentiles.
Mars Hill is where Paul gave a famous speech. He stood there and declared to the people the existence of the one true God. The God who created the universe, and that God is not served by human hands. Paul wanted the people to understand that they needed to know the true God. He wanted them to see how much God loved them (all of us) and would die for us. The message of Paul’s speech came with mixed reactions from the people. Some mocked him. The philosopher Dionysius, along with others, became Paul’s followers.
Fast forward to today. Look at the gods some worship. How is it not the same thing all these many years later? To those of us who proclaim this wonderful love, we know how powerful it is.
What do you say?
Ever watch your kids drive off into the sunset after getting their driver’s license?
Photo by Ulrik Skare on Unsplash
Or after they get married?
We love our kids forever. Just as God loves us. We trust God’s steadfast love. And isn’t that so very amazing?
What do you say?
And that’s what I learned in Church……see ya next time!
From my family to yours.
