Saturday, 25th May 2024
Bible Reading: Psalm 100: 4-5
Memory Verse: Enter with the password: “Thank you!” Make yourselves at home, talking praise. Thank him. Worship him. Psalm 100:4 (MSG)
James W. Goll wrote: Psalm 100:4-5 is an iconic verses. Yet, we often don’t practice them! It’s so easy to enter God’s presence with praise and miss a key step: thanksgiving. We don’t enter God’s presence with praise; we enter His presence with thanksgiving! But why? Well, when we start our prayers and worship with thanksgiving, it changes our perspective; it takes us into a new realm of the spirit that ushers in genuine praise. This concept applies to worship, but also to our prayer life! Anytime we approach God, it’s important to come before Him with gratitude.
Another powerful gratitude lesson is found in Luke 17:12-17. This is the Biblical account of the ten lepers. Here, Jesus runs into ten men with leprosy begging Jesus to have pity on them and heal them. Jesus sees them and commands them to appear before the Jewish priests. As they went, they became cleansed of their leprosy. However, after being healed, only one of them comes back to thank Jesus!
This leper was so thankful, the story says he threw himself at Jesus’ feet thanking Him. Jesus responds in amazement, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?” Only one out of ten of the lepers came back to thank Jesus for healing them. As we interact with the miracle working power of God, it’s easy to become overly familiar and take God’s power for granted. That’s where this parable is a helpful reminder.
We need to remember to thank God for His work in our life. I also believe this parable unveils another important spiritual principle: when we thank God for the partial, He makes a pathway for the full. Sometimes, like the leper, we’re healed as we go. We have to learn to be thankful for the little God has done first before we get to see the full. I find thanking God for the partial is one of the best ways to honor and partner with God as He’s moving in my life.
When you take time to show gratitude to Jehovah, He raises your altitude. No matter how bad a situation is, there is always a point of praise.
Quote: When we start our prayers and worship with thanksgiving, it changes our perspective.
Prophetic Decree: I command the channels of your spirit to open, in Jesus name.
Prayer Focus:
1. Today, I receive a revelational understanding of the power of thanksgiving in Jesus name.
2. Holy Spirit, please bring me to a place where I see God in everything I do, in Jesus name.
3. Thank you Father for the ability to speak.
4. Thank you Father for the ability to think.
5. Thank you Father for the ability to see with my eyes.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Chronicles 23-25