Monday | Praise & Thanksgiving
Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name…” Luke 11:1-2
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever…
Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
for he satisfies the thirsty
and fills the hungry with good things.
Psalm 107:1, 8-9
Praise the Lord, for it is a good thing to sing praises unto our God; *
indeed, a joyful and pleasant thing it is to be thankful.
Psalm 147:1
Monday | Praise & Thanksgiving: Journal / pray / share thanksgiving and praises. Consider grand general truths about God’s character as well as the ways you experience God’s goodness in your own life, even in the small details. We might simply notice the spring flowers and attribute their beauty to God’s creativity and kindness, or remember particular people in our lives who have in some way blessed us, or take time to thank God for the ways that he has answered our prayers. If you are struggling to identify good things in your life, begin wherever you can, asking for God's help to see things as he sees. The one place we always can, and perhaps should, begin is to praise and thank God for manifesting His love for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Jesus taught his disciples to begin their prayers with worship, and we also want to begin each week with praise and thanksgiving. As we look outside of ourselves to declare the perfection of God’s goodness, truth, and beauty, we align our hearts with the ultimate reality of the eternal God who does not change. We do not always have access to the feelings that ought to accompany a knowledge of God’s character as He is revealed in the Scriptures. But we can always choose with our wills to praise God, and to offer thanksgiving for every good and perfect gift. This delights our Father and ushers us into a new joy and freedom as we begin to see the world through the lens of God’s holiness and love. This discipline doesn’t ask us to pretend or ignore our pain, questions or disappointments. Instead, we learn how to bring those things to God in truth as we practice setting our focus first on his goodness, his faithfulness to us, and his love for the world.