Pitching My Tent

This is what woke me this morning - - thunder, lightning, more torrential rain and a moaning dog. For the past several days, in my area, we have had more rain than we care to mention.  Yesterday, I got a call that our little Waverunner had completely floated off of its perch and headed out on its own excursion to the middle of the lake.  Fortunately, a kind neighbor went out to get it and re-moor it, this time tied to the dock.  Apparently, the current el Nino system at work on the west coast has had numerous weird repercussions across our country.  Another example is that we have just experienced the warmest December on record here.  I have resisted turning on the air conditioning system, even though temps inside the house have risen to over 75 degrees....weird, just weird!

When you are a part-time teacher and blogger, whose teaching is mostly online, your schedule is quite flexible.  So, here I sit in the dark house, the candle Son 2 gave me for Christmas burning by my side, with the lights of our Christmas tree still glowing.  (Yes, I love it so much that I'll keep it up until after New Years.)  I'm grateful to not have to get out into the fray this morning although I'll be grading a big stack of assignments here at home, later in the day.

Yesterday, a member of our college youth group posted a video to Facebook about a thankful mother. (I'll give you the link in Sources: below.)  I found the video to be very convicting, as I am not nearly as focused on thankfulness as I need to be.  In America we have a designated national day of thanksgiving, the 4th Thursday in November each year.  Unfortunately, as time has gone on, that day has become more about Christmas shopping, overeating and football, than about giving thanks.  Even so, even if on that designated day we are truly thankful, thankfulness should not be limited to one day of the year.  On that note,  Psalm 92 (AMP):

1 It is a good and delightful thing to give thanks to the Lord,

To sing praises to Your name, O Most High,

2  To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning

And Your faithfulness by night,

3  With an instrument of ten strings and with the harp,

With a solemn sound on the lyre.

4  For You, O Lord, have made me glad by Your works;

At the works of Your hands I joyfully sing.

5  How great are Your works, O Lord!

Your thoughts are very deep [beyond man’s understanding].

6  A senseless man [in his crude and uncultivated state] knows nothing,

Nor does a [self-righteous] fool understand this:

7  That though the wicked sprout up like grass

And all evildoers flourish,

They will be destroyed forever.

8  But You, Lord, are on high forever.

9  For behold, Your enemies, O Lord,

For behold, Your enemies will perish;

All who do evil will be scattered.

10  But my horn [my emblem of strength and power] You have exalted like that of a wild ox;

I am anointed with fresh oil [for Your service].

11  My eye has looked on my foes;

My ears hear of the evildoers who rise up against me.

12  The righteous will flourish like the date palm [long-lived, upright and useful];

They will grow like a cedar in Lebanon [majestic and stable].

13  Planted in the house of the Lord,

They will flourish in the courts of our God.

14  [Growing in grace] they will still thrive and bear fruit and prosper in old age;

They will flourish and be [a]vital and fresh [rich in trust and love and contentment];

15  [They are living memorials] to declare that the Lord is upright and faithful [to His promises];

He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

What a great psalm with which to end the year!

In verses 1 and 2 we see two of the Hebrew names for God:  1) Adonai and 2) El Elyon.  One of these days I'm going to do a study of the Names of God and take any of you interested along with me.  So fascinating!  The most holy name of God in Hebrew would not be pronounced by the people.  It was written YHWH and is referred to as the Sacred Tetragrammaton, meaning "4 consonants".  Instead of calling Him by this name, the Hebrews instead spoke His name as "Adonai" when they encountered the written YHWH in the text.  When you read " the Lord" in verse one, in the Hebrew it is spoken as "Adonai".  This is the most commonly used name for GOD in the Old Testament, occurring over 300 times.  This term only refers to the supreme God above all gods, whereas the more basic form of the word "Adon" (translated in our texts as "Lord") can refer to humans, angels but is also applied to theophanies and Father God Himself as well.

Then, there is the name "El Elyon", which means "The Most High God" (vs. 2).

The psalmist says that we should "bookend" our days by thanking and praising God morning and night ... and at all points in-between.  I have to confess that thanksgiving and praising do not make up the bulk of my prayers.  They should.  These types of prayers delight the LORD.

We should "pitch our tent in thankfulness" - - thank Him for all things.  However, the psalmist says to specifically thank Him for:
1.  His loving kindness to us (vs. 2)
2.  His faithfulness to us (vs. 2)
3.  His mighty works (vs. 4 and 5)
4.  His deep, unsearchable thoughts - - His character (vs. 5)
5.  His supremacy and sovereignty (vs. 8)
6.  His daily, fresh anointing of His Spirit upon my life (vs. 10)
7.  His causing me to flourish, even into old age (vs. 12-15)
8.  His trustworthiness and holiness (vs. 15)

When we express our thankfulness to God, it makes us more prone to thank others who God uses to bless us.  This brings me back around to the Facebook video.  It's the first link in the Sources: section below.  Go watch it, and then thank both the LORD and another human being today.  Show God's love by saying a simple "thanks".  It will bless!

Father, please forgive me for my lack of thankfulness.  I recognize that when I am dwelling in unthankfulness I am much more prone to depression and sloth and other types of sinful attitudes. Thank you for the "anonymous" writer of Psalm 92, whom You inspired to write this wonderful psalm of thanksgiving.  Your words, O LORD, are spirit and they are life!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

https://www.facebook.com/omeletocom/videos/10153808384484494/?theater

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Names_of_G-d/Adonai/adonai.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Names_of_G-d/El/el.html

Thanksgiving

Good morning,

Frankly, Thanksgiving Day has taken a hit in our modern,  American culture.  From its birth, established a national holiday by President Lincoln in 1863, it has been a day when people ceased from their labors, gathered together with loved ones, and thanked the Lord for all He has done. Lately however, it has been overshadowed by encroaching Christmas commercialism.  Harvest-themed decorations are scarce, while Halloween decor proliferates.  Then, as early as September, we begin to see Christmas decorations.

Last evening, on his radio show, my friend, Erick Erickson, asked callers to phone in as to what they are thankful for, since Thanksgiving Day is tomorrow, (as I write this in real time).  There was a variety of answers, as you might expect.  I fleetingly thought about what I am most thankful for, and that is the privilege of knowing Jesus Christ.  Then, en route to a destination, I did not give it any deeper thought.  After that huge #1, there are many competing blessings for which I am thankful.

Christian thankfulness springs from a sure belief that God our Father is the Giver of all good things, through the person of His Son, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit who lives within us.  Without that foundational truth, thankfulness is superficial.  Perhaps this is why Thanksgiving Day has fallen so out of fashion.  We, as a people, do not acknowledge that our dependence is on God, that our successes flow from His gracious hand, that the very food we eat and the clean air we breathe are His providence.

In the dead of night last night I lay awake for a couple of hours, trying to find sleep again.  During that time, I reflected on how blessed I am and how thankful I am that so many of our family members still walk this earth with us.  Thanksgiving week has always been one of my favorite times of year, but it became of greater significance 18 years ago when my daddy lost his long battle with cancer the Saturday before "the big day".  In fact, today, 18 years ago, we laid his body in the ground.  Last April, our family lost my husband's brother to an extended battle with cancer.  Losing that dear, sweet, generous Christian man was a huge blow to our family.  All of this caused me to be grateful that so many of our loved ones are still here.  All other 50 or so of my husband's large, extended family are still with us.  My husband and children are healthy and well.  Both my siblings are thriving, as are their children.  Of my 10 aunts and uncles, all in their late 70s or 80s, only one has gone on.  Of my 11 cousins, only one has passed on.  My mother has been blessed, similarly, with good health this past year.  For these bountiful blessings, I am tremendously grateful.

Publix food stores has a poignant Thanksgiving commercial out at the moment.  It shows many aspects of Thanksgiving Day celebrations - - - dropping the casserole, burning the food, setting off the smoke alarm, the power going out, squabbling family members, etc.  In the end, though, everyone gathers around the table, joins hands and (presumably) gives thanks.  In the middle of all that upheaval and catastrophe, peace and thankfulness come.

Paul, in his letter to the Colossians (3:15), says - - -

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body, and be ye thankful. 

(KJV)

It is difficult to be thankful unless peace is present first.  By an act of our will we must embrace Christ's peace, that peace only available from Him, and let it rule in our hearts, not only at the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, but always.  His peace, so transformative, brings thankfulness.

No matter the upheaval, the unpleasant surprises, the disagreements, the various human foibles or seemingly indiscriminate sorrows that may arise to steal your joy this Thanksgiving, look toward Jesus, embrace His truth and His peace.
And then, give thanks.

Heavenly Father, You are the Source of All Blessing.  We thank You today for Your Son, our Savior. In His name, may we be truly thankful for the tremendous bounty we have received from Your hand. Amen.