GREAT THINGS

The LORD has done great

things for us, and we

are glad.

Psalm 126:3

Recently, I read the above verse and for good reasons, and I felt very convicted by it's message. Thanksgiving has been THE time of year we are supposed to take time to count our own personal blessings. Supposedly, such blessing counting only includes just the previous year.

During the course of a year, we may feel a kind of gratitude off and on depending on the blessings that have come our way. The writer of this above Psalm is writing out of joy. At that time God had brought back captives back to Zion. That was really a big deal for those folks who had been away from their homeland for such a long time. Their response to returning was that of joy and singing in celebration of being free and in their land.

That was a really big event for those folks who had known captivity for such a long time. I'm sure God was thrilled with the adoration of the people. We can look through Scripture and read of God's goodness to people in so many ways.

We may know nothing of their circumstances and joy. They had known captivity for years. We may never know that kind of captivity but we've known our own captivity times. When in captivity, there always seems that there is no way out.  The above verse alone doesn't give us the sizes of our problems. It also doesn't address anything small.

Standing alone, a simple statement comes from the verse. In fact that statement is written two times in both second and third verse: “The Lord has done great things for (them) us.” We can't just think of God's goodness in terms of the past. He didn't just work for those captives but continues to do great things for us right now. I'm determined to be more aware of God's goodness in my life. I want to be more grateful for the great things He does in my life everyday while taking note of the numerous ways God shows Himself in what we would consider the smaller blessings of life.

Dear Father, You show us Your love for us in so many wonderful ways both in huge events and the every days of our lives. Thank You for loving and caring for us in so many ways that we sometimes overlook. In Jesus' precious name...Amen