Give Thanks to the Lord
Somewhere in your home there may be a family photograph, perhaps framed and hanging on a wall or sitting quietly on a shelf, where it can easily be seen. In the photograph are people you want to remember, smiles grinning from ear to ear, and bodies pressed together as everyone squeezes into frame. The youngest are arranged near the front, while the oldest fill the gaps towards the back. As you look at your photograph, it’s not uncommon to realize how much has changed since the day it was taken.
Yet every time we look at a photograph the same thing happens. We remember.
Photographs capture moments of our lives that we hold precious. Behind every photograph is a story- a story of people we hold dear, places we long to revisit, and moments we wish we could relive.
Perhaps that’s what makes the words of Psalm 107:1–2 (NKJV) so meaningful. The psalmist begins with a simple reminder: “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.”
But he doesn’t stop there. His next words bring the reason for our gratitude closer to home.
“Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy.”
This is the story behind our thanksgiving. It’s a story of God’s goodness, His enduring love, and His faithfulness to those He has redeemed. There are many reasons to be thankful. But there is no greater reason for our gratitude than acknowledging what God has done for us.
God’s love was never something we could earn, we could claim or even deserved. We are sinners, unable to make ourselves right with God. But God, through His goodness and mercy, made a way for us to be restored to Himself.
Romans 5 says that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. He took the punishment our sin demanded. Then, through His death and resurrection, made it possible for us to be forgiven, redeemed, and brought into a right relationship with God.
When we give thanks, our gratitude should cause us to stop and remember all God has done for us. Real gratitude reaches beyond the blessings we can see and touch and sees the God whose love has never failed, and whose greatest gift was the sacrifice of His own Son.
As Thanksgiving approaches, take time to consider all that God has done for you. Give thanks for the people God placed in your life, the blessings He’s provided. And above all, thank God for the redemption He made possible through Jesus Christ.
Don’t become so caught up in counting your blessings that you forget the greatest gift you’ve ever received.
“Let the redeemed of the LORD say so.”
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