Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever. To Him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever. Who by His understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever. Who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever. Psalm 136:1-6
“Thanking is a true inward knowing, with great reverence and lovely dread turning ourselves with all our mights unto the working that our good Lord stirreth us to, enjoying and thanking inwardly. And sometimes, for plenteousness it breaketh out with voice and saith: ‘Good Lord, I thank Thee! Blessed mayst Thou be!'”
Julian of Norwich (1342-1416) in Revelations of Divine Love (London: Methuen & Company, 1901) 86.
In God’s providence, I read excerpts of Julian of Norwich yesterday about thankfulness. She convinced me that “thanking is a true inward knowing” or in plain terms, we see things rightly when we are filled with thankfulness.
Coupled with this, it is my turn to lead the discussion this morning at our Tuesday morning Bible study at Pinehurst. We are reading through the Psalms, five per week. I am looking forward to facilitating the discussion on Psalms 136-140 today.
Psalm 136 is a long-time favorite. It’s an antiphonal psalm of thankfulness. That means it would have been sung by two choirs back and forth. If you read it yourself, you get a profound sense that your mind and heart are in conversation back and forth. Your mind proclaims all that God has done, and your heart can only reply with thankfulness for the love of God which endures forever.
We can’t be generous until first we are thankful. “Thanking is a true inward knowing” and only after we take this posture can we see things rightly and live richly. Today, with thankfulness, I fly to Australia for two weeks of ministry. I am thankful God watches over my family, that He provides for our needs, that He leads and guides us in all we say and do. His love endures forever!
What about you? What are you thankful for? And how will it shape your generous living today?