Give Thanks

Psalm 50:14-15 (English Standard Version)

14Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and perform your vows to the Most High,
15and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."


Thanksgiving is undoubtably the proper response to God. Apart from any blessings He may bestow to us He is worthy of praise as the immortal, immutable creator God. Furthermore, an attitude of thanks on our part helps us to maintian a healthy spirit and avoid the the pitfall of pride. In Deut. 8 Moses reminds the Jews of the blessings God has given then and implores them to remember what God has done. Moses feared that once they entered the promised land and began to prosper that they would forget what God had done and become puffed up with pride. A thankful heart is also a humble heart. When we bring thanks to God we also remind ourselves of all that He has done and of how powerless we are apart from Him. Humanity, unfortunatly, has a long history of running to God in calamity and begging for His aid, but then putting God back on the shelf and forgetting Him in times of prosperity. By offering thanks we help ensure that our memories are not so short.

Deuteronomy 8:11-20 (English Standard Version)

11 "Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, 12 lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, 15 who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, 16who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 17 Beware lest you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.' 18 You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day. 19 And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. 20 Like the nations that the LORD makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God.