We'll be moving to a different website at the end of May and how we send out Bible Notes will work a bit differently.  You'll now be able to download the whole month's readings in one go to read at your own pace rather than receiving them daily.  We hope you'll continue to enjoy reading these notes put together by members of FoL.

²⁰ “The Lord will save me, and we will sing with stringed instruments all the days of our lives    in the temple of the Lord.”

When I was a child my parents would frequently remind me to thank people who had given me gifts or who had done kind things for me. My mother would say, “What do you say…?” Which I have to confess often only elicited a rather grumpy and half-hearted “Thank you” from me.

These words from Isaiah 38 were part of a prayer or song of thanksgiving from Hezekiah who had been suffering from an illness that had threatened his life which he had subsequently survived. God had healed Him! He was so grateful that he celebrated with joyfulness and celebration.

A huge part of middle-eastern culture revolved, and still revolves, around celebration and worship in situations like this. When God healed someone or delivered them from a difficult place or defended them in a battle against an enemy the people would celebrate and worship God. It’s a great way of ensuring that we don’t take the good things that God blesses us with for granted. When we actively celebrate His works, praise His name and rejoice in His goodness we find ourselves assuming an attitude of gratitude that has its roots in the depths of our hearts as opposed to the rather grumpy, begrudging “Thanks you’s” I said as a child. It deepens our relationship with Him and helps us to remember that all good things come from God who loves us more than we can ever imagine.

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Application:

What is God doing in your life at the moment? When you’ve had a moment to consider that I find myself very tempted to ask, “What do you say?” as my mother would have. But instead I’d like to ask you what you want to do to celebrate the way that God has been moving in your life? How can you express your thanks and praise for His goodness? Sometimes the words ‘Thank You’ can feel a bit thin so consider what else can you do?

Prayer:

Thank You Lord for all the good things You do in my life. Thank You for the things I have seen and the things that are unseen. I rejoice in Your goodness and delight in your ways! I pray that You will see the gratitude I have for the work of Your hands in the things I do and in the way I walk with You. Amen.