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How Can I Bless God?

 

“Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!” Ps. 103:1

Thanksgiving Day will soon be upon us. There are so many portions of Scripture that remind us to be grateful to our God. One of the most beautiful psalms, Psalm 103:1-5 says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

In just a few short verses the psalmist reminds us of so many things for which to be thankful: all the benefits, all the blessings of our Lord, particularly the matter of forgiveness, physical and bodily strength, redemption from sin, the love and mercy that He showers upon us each day as He blesses our lives and makes it possible for us to live in joy and in happiness.

Even though you can easily understand how God can bless you, have you ever wondered how you can bless God as the psalmist encourages you to do? I think the answer to that question comes out very clearly in the story that is told by Donald G. Barnhouse. He says:

“While I was preaching at Hope College in Holland, Michigan, the janitor, who was an elder in his church, came up to me and said, “I would like to ask you a question. I can understand ‘God bless me,” but how can I bless God? ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul.’ How can I bless Him?”

I said, “Do you have any children?” He replied, “Yes, I do.” “How old are they?” “Well,” he said, “I have a child who is five and one who is seven.” “At Christmastime do they ever give you a Christmas present?” I asked. “Yes, they do.” “Do you know what they are going to give you?” “No, I don’t.” “Who picks it out?” “They do, with their mother.” “Who pays for it?” “I do.” “That’s exactly it,” I said, “You pay for the Christmas presents which your babies give you. You’re so glad that they talk about it and have secrets with mother. I can remember when my own children were growing up, how wonderfully excited they were that they were going to surprise Daddy. They came and said, “Daddy, here is a blessing for you.” It came from me, but it was a blessing because it had come as the boomerang of love.”

So it is when, we cry blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving. We bless Thee, O Lord! With what? With the blessing that He puts in our lives. Everything that we have and are comes from Him. How delighted we are to offer it back to Him and to acknowledge before all the world that there is nothing that we have or could be that does not come from Him.

Let it be that way also with you and me this Thanksgiving, that we offer back to God the blessings that He has bestowed upon us, so that we truly might show gratitude, appreciation, thanksgiving and thanksgiving for Him.

Yours in Jesus,

Pastor Haupt

D & W SCHOOL DAYS

We can earn 2% of your total purchases by shopping at D & W Food Stores during the week of November 23^rd.

Just tell the cashier to use School Code #95928, or they can look up St. John’s in their system.

If you buy scrip in advance, we can earn an additional 4%! There is no need to use a coupon to participate.