The Psalmist declares, “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord while I live.” [Psalm 146:1-2] Praise must be a vibrant trait of the Christian.  Has the Lord been gracious to you?  Has the Lord heard and answered your prayers?  Has the Lord healed you of your sickness and illness?  Has the Lord provided you with all the necessities of your life? Has the Lord blessed you with children and grandchildren?  If He has done any of these and things similar, then praise Him while you live.

To be silent over the Lord’s great mercies to you is to show an attitude of ingratitude.  To hold your tongue and not praise Him is to be as guilty as the nine lepers healed by the Lord who did not express their gratitude.  Why is that event in the gospel record?  Could it be the Holy Spirit is teaching us when blessed in some way by God we should express words of praise and gratitude.

Does not the Hebrew writer remind us of that with this exhortation, “Through Him [Jesus] then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.” [Hebrews 13:15] Does the ripen fruit of thanksgiving and praise drop from you lips?

As we come upon another Thanksgiving season, look back over the year and give thought to all the manifold blessings God has bestowed on you.  No doubt there have been challenges and sorrows, but even in those times, did not God give you a blessing of some sort, even if it was just strength to endure.

The praises of gratitude help us recognize our dependence upon the mighty arm of our Lord.  Praises of thanksgiving help us realize how often God hears and answers our pleas for assistance.  Praises of appreciation strengthen us in times of weakness and doubt, for it causes us to focus our mind upon every good gift He has bestowed upon us as His child.

Angels don’t pray but they cease not to praise. The redeemed who abide in heaven give praise and thanks to the Father and the Son. Both angels and the redeemed cry out, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory, and dominion forever and ever.” [Revelation 5:13]

While on earth, while we have the breath of life, let us give praise and thanks to our God! — Tom