GIVE THANKS TO GOD!
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name.
Psalms 100:4 NLT
TODAY’S THOUGHT
How do we get into the presence of God? The answer is given in our text today—with thanksgiving and praise. Thanksgiving is taking time to thank God for what He has done. Praise is acknowledging Who God is. In the times of the Temple worship the priest was allowed to enter the Holy of Holies once a year to sprinkle the blood of the Passover lamb on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. It was to provide atonement for the sins of the nation. Before the priest physically walked into the Holy of Holies, he would wave a pot of incense from the altar of incense inside the curtain. The incense was a physical sign of worship. He did not enter without having worship go before him. We seem to always come to God with a laundry list of things we want Him to fix and clean up. For some it is like giving God our “To Do” list with instructions on how and when to complete the list. I believe we can transform our prayer lives when we begin with a time of thanksgiving and praise. How about taking time to think about what God has already provided in your life. Verbally thank God for health, resources, family, friends, opportunities, etc. What do you have to be thankful for? Praise God for Who He has been in your life. He is your Savior, Healer, Provider, Guide, and so much more. When you begin to praise God for Who He is you expand your view of God. This exercise is building your faith. A wise man told me early in my ministry you can have a big God and little problems, or a little God and big problems. You can’t have both. The bigger you make God the smaller your problems become. It is always a matter of perspective. If you focus on the problems, they grow in your mind. If you focus on God, the problems fade. Thanksgiving and praise will shrink your view of your problems and expand your view of God. That’s when we begin to live by faith and not fear. In His presence is everything you and I need. Let’s enter His presence with thanksgiving and praise.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Holy Spirit teach me how to give true thanksgiving and praise. Teach me to focus on You and not my problems.
“Scroll down to share what you feel God is saying based on today’s reading.”
I choose to focus on God so I have a big God and little problems.