Give thanks to the Lord

"Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples." 1 Chron 16:8

There is, it seems, a great deal of ungratefulness in our lives. We are numb when it comes to giving thanks; true, heart-felt thanks to the Lord. This hardness of heart is seen in our daily lives and the priorities that we have. Who is it that wakes up and gives the Lord thanks? Who is it that rises and turns to His Word for help, guidance, protection, and the giving of thanks?

We have forgotten the Lord and so we have failed to give thanks to Him for His goodness, mercy, and grace. We focus, instead, on the evil overtaking the land. We blame our leaders, we blame greed, we worry, we fret, and our hearts turn bitter. We wonder at the iniquity taking place all around us and see not the sin in our own hearts and lives. We ask God, why, why, when trouble strikes or when pain inflicts us never realizing, never turning our hearts to the Lord, and seeing that our troubles show the mercy of the Lord. God's momentary chastisement seeks to return our hearts back to Him so that we live for Him and not ourselves.

Because our hearts are darkened we cannot nor will not proclaim His deeds and

His name. Those unbelievers around us watch us and watch our ineffectiveness,

our uncaring, and our dishearten walk with God. They see a people laden in

sadness and iniquity, with selfishness, greed, anger, and they reject the Lord of mercy and grace because they reject us... as we represent Him.

A prayer - Lord, may our hearts turn to you and may we love you with all our heart, soul, and mind. Forgive our iniquities and wash us clean through the

blood of Jesus. Turn our hearts to you and return to us the joy of your salvation. Return, so that we may give thanks and bless your name and proclaim you good deeds and righteous name to a dark and dying world.