Psalm 21:7 “For the king trusts in the Lord; through the unfailing love of the Most High he will not be shaken.” (NIV)
If there is one spiritual principle that must be affirmed in the life of the Christian, it is that whenever we are blessed by God, we must thank him and praise his glorious name. Psalm 21 is a psalm of thanksgiving as David praises God for his help in winning many battles. This should be natural for those in Christ, since God’s blessings are uncountable, continuous, and sufficient for every aspect and need in our lives. Isn’t it sad to see a people with an ungrateful heart and an unthankful spirit like the nine lepers of Luke 17?
Remember what Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” How can one be in Christ and live without joy, without prayer, and without thanksgiving? My friends, that is a dry pod of a person who lives in a desert surrounded by the oasis of God’s blessings, but cannot find their way to the life-giving waters because of self-absorption and a bitter spirit focused on self-doubt, rather than God’s grace.
In our devotional text, David makes it clear in the spirit of praise and thanksgiving to his God that it is only because of the unfailing love of God that he will stand firm. I believe Psalm 21 has as its historical antecedent, 2 Samuel 7, as God blesses David with a throne that would be established forever. Immediately following God’s great promise and blessing, David sat down before the Lord and thanked God for what he had done in blessing him and praised the Lord’s name! Psalm 21 is written to affirm this moment in the life of the nation, as a psalm of thanksgiving for what God has done for them and their king.
I want to be a grape connected to the vitality of Jesus Christ the vine (John 15), so that I might receive the unmerited sap of God’s grace into my life and grow up in all things. To stay connected to the vine, I must be a prayer warrior and a thankful praise giver as I understand what God is doing for me day by day. If you fail to pray, and if you fail to give spontaneously thankful praise, you will be separated from the vine and shrivel up on the ground as a dried up, spent out, and bitter raisin of a person. A Christian cannot be faithful without prayer and thankful praise, nor can that person live with joy in their heart; just look at 1 Thessalonians 5 above. If God blesses you, get on your knees immediately and thank God and praise his precious name. The blessings of God will dry up in our lives if we never learn to thank him for them. Not because God stops blessing, but we decide to disconnect from the vine and separate ourselves from the sustaining power of God’s marvelous grace.
TODAY, LORD, I WILL THANK YOU AND PRAISE YOUR NAME WHEN I RECEIVE YOUR DAILY BLESSINGS. AMEN!
Article Source: Mike White @ Summit church of Christ
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