Take Time To Be Thankful

Psalm 92:1-15

A Psalm or Song for the sabbath day.

“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,  Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.  For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands.” (Psalm 92:1-4)

Taking the time to think about how God has blessed us does a great deal to lift our spirits and remove depression.  Music tends to deepen the emotional impact of the song’s message, whether good or bad.   The Psalmist makes a point about using different instruments to share God’s loving kindness, whether a hammered dulcimer with ten strings or a psaltery or harp with a more serious sound. 

In Ephesians 5:17-20, Paul instructs Christians to do the same thing  “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.  And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 

An unthankful spirit is one of the characteristics of those who turn away from God as Paul describes in II Timothy 3:1-4.  “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,  Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.”   Because they do not appreciate what they have, they become totally self-centered, with no concern for how their actions affect other people.  Their only concern becomes getting more for themselves and are never satisfied.    

 Learning to be thankful and sing praises to God plays a major role in maintaining a spiritual attitude.  In Colossians 2:6-7 Paul instructs. “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.”  Hebrews 13:15 commands, “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.”   A thankful attitude is crucial for a healthy attitude.   The Psalmist is focused on what God has done. 

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“O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.  A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this.” (Psalm 92:5-6)

The Psalmist understands God’s thoughts go to very root of things and as a result his accomplishments are beyond compare.  Unfortunately, those who are animal like, only concerned with their immediate pleasure do not understand that there is than immediate gratification.  They are like people in the story. The Goose That Laid The Golden Eggs, destroying their future benefits in an effort to get more right now.

“When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever:  But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore.  For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.” (Psalm 92:7-9)

While the wicked appear to do much better for a time, it is a temporary situation.  Ultimately they will be destroyed forever, because God is the ruler of the universe, and he will see to their punishment.   Those who deliberately do wrong will be destroyed and scattered like a dead man’s ashes. 

“But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.  Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me.” (Psalm 92:10-11)

For the gazelle, the size his horns are a sign of his maturity and power. God will make the horns of his servants long and strong as a sign of their blessing with God.   We used to spread oil on a cloth for the cattle to rub on to keep insects away and prevent their skin drying out.   God’s people will be protected from many of the annoyances of daily life, and they will get to see the punishment of those who have taken advantage of them.

“The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.  Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.  They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; To show that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.” (Psalm 92:12-15)

Those who do right will be like a palm tree, growing steadily regardless what the weather does, or like the local juniper trees, which survive and thrive, even when everything else is dying for lack of water.  Those that have placed their faith in God will flourish like a fruit tree planted in one’s garden.  While it takes several years for them to begin producing fruit, they will eventually begin to see the results of their work, demonstrating that God can be trusted in every way because there is no unrighteousness in him.  He will always reward people appropriately.