There are many Psalms of thanksgiving in the Bible and we know dozens of verses that speak of thanksgiving to the Lord. But what should we thank God for? This verse highlights two distinct things for which we need to thank God:
• His goodness
• His wonders in favor of men
We often focus on the latter and leave out the former. We must not only thank the Lord for His works, for the things He has done for us, but also for who He is. It's easy to make a gratitude list of all the good things the Lord has done for us: miracles, answered prayers, powerful interventions, deliverances... But do we really take the time to thank God for who He is?
If you only thank God for what He has done, you may not maintain an attitude of gratitude throughout your days. There will be times when you will be disappointed because God didn't answer a prayer the way you wanted or didn't give you what you wanted at that particular moment. However, when you focus instead on who God is, you will learn to thank the Lord in every circumstance as Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV): “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.“
No matter what your current situation is, God is always good. The Lord is our Savior, Healer, Redeemer, Friend, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He is loving and compassionate, just and forgiving... for which we can always be grateful.
Today we want to pray to the Lord together saying: Father of Love, thank you for who you are, for your love, for your compassion and for your infinite goodness. I thank you with all my heart. Help me to always trust in You. In the name of Jesus... Amen!
With love, Ivano Salerno