Irrepressible Gratitude

November 25, 2020

Let all that I am praise the LORD; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! Psalm 103:1-5 NLT

If you’ve been in church very long, you’ve had this experience. You’re in a service or small group or class where people are invited to share testimonies—expressions of thanksgiving and gratitude to God for His work on their behalf. But it’s hard to get going. No one has much to say, and the leader says something like, “Well, remember Jesus said if we didn’t praise Him, the rocks would cry out! We might hear something from a stone pretty soon here!” Or, more tactfully, he or she may just quickly say something like, “Well, if that’s it for tonight, let’s move on to …” and pass to the next element of the gathering. Now, when something like that happens, you know it’s not because God has stopped being good or that we don’t love Jesus anymore. We’re just … well, we’re not focused on gratitude and overflowing with thankfulness. Our minds are somewhere else.

David was a man focused on the goodness of God and gratitude. Even in the Psalms, which often show his frustration and angst at the events currently happening in his life, he most often turns to praise before the psalm is finished. Psalm 103 is like a fountain that just bubbles up and over in a constant stream of praise. David says he is praising God with his whole heart and says, “I don’t EVER want to forget the good things He does for me!” Then he begins to make a list. You get the feeling that David could go on forever. He speaks in broad terms like God’s love, His tender mercies, and the way God has filled His life with good thigs. If David got specific, he could fill an entire book.

God Himself said that He was so close to David that David had a heart like His own. Gratitude always deepens relationships. It will happen for you too.

• Take some time between now and the end of the week to write your own Psalm. Thank God for evidence of His love, mercy, and all the good things He has done for you. Watch how close God comes to you.