105 Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!
3 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
4 Seek the Lord and his strength;
seek his presence continually!
Thankfulness. Gratitude. Appreciation. Gratefulness. We set aside this day to experience the essence of these words. And yet as I sit here with my crew, I wonder if my gratefulness runs deep enough. Does it reach through the core of who I am? Am I a thankful person, able to see with my eyes the presence of my God and His tremendous love for me, beyond even his provision for my family?
I love how Psalm 105:1 (see above) couples “Give Thanks Unto the Lord” with “Call Upon His Name.” Because in the midst of giving thanks to the God who sees, the God who provides; even in the midst of all that He has done for me–He invites me to continue to call upon his name. To seek Him out. To be willing to say “Yes, God, please provide for my physical needs, but more than that, much more than that, please meet the needs of my soul”
God is father, He is Abba. He delights to meet the needs of His children. But even more so, He delights in our calling upon His name. When we realize that it is only in Him that we find life, then our gratitude grows deeper, like the roots of a tree. And the deeper the roots, the deeper our gratitude, the stronger we will be because we are “rooted and grounded in love” (Ephesians 3:17)–His love.
How do we show this gratitude? The rest of this passage answers that question. We make known his deeds. We worship. We glory in His name. We rejoice. And we seek the Lord, His strength (not ours). And we seek His presence continually.
I am grateful for each and everyone of you, my friends and family. My prayer for you this Thanksgiving today is the words of Psalm 105, that you would be deeply grateful today and call upon His name. That you would worship and rejoice and seek His presence.
Continually.
