Thanksgiving and Praise

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Psalm 136:1

Has the Lord been good and gracious to you? The psalmist states as a matter of fact that our God is good and therefore worthy to be praised. Praise, like prayer, is one great means of promoting the growth of our spiritual life. It helps to lift our burdens, raise our hopes and increase our faith. It is an invigorating spiritual exercise that quickens the believer and strengthens him to serve God more joyfully. Has God answered your prayers? Has He blessed you more than you expected? Well, don’t stop praising God! Especially when He has answered your prayers and given you the desires of your heart. Don’t be silent when you experience God’s goodness and His mercy.

There were nine lepers, who, after they had been cured of their leprosy, did not return to give thanks to Jesus. The 10th leper who came back to give thanks was the only one who went away totally made well—spirit, soul and body (Luke 17:11-19). To forget to praise God is to deny God’s benefits for your life.

As we give thanks and praise the Lord, others will benefit and be encouraged:

1. “The humble shall hear of it and be glad” (Ps. 34:2). Others who have been in similar circumstances will take comfort if we magnify the LORD and exalt His name together (34:3).
2. Weak hearts will be strengthened, and downcast saints will be revived as they listen to our “songs of deliverance” (32:7). Their doubts and fears will be rebuked, as we teach and admonish “one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Col. 3:16).
3. They too will “sing of the ways of the LORD” (Ps. 138:5) when they hear us magnify His holy name. Praise should be so important to us. The angels do not pray, but they do not cease to praise both day and night; and the redeemed, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, are never weary of singing the new song, “Worthy is the Lamb” (Rev. 5:12). Therefore make a decision today to praise and give thanks no matter what happens in your life. “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess. 5:18).