Praise

I have many reasons to praise His holy name this morning... continual changes in my perspective that are impacting my heart and my workplace in big and small ways, the incredible winter sunrises and sunsets we're starting to see here in the Midwest, the overwhelmingly wonderful man that the Lord has put in my life to love me, and I could truly go on and on... And perhaps it would be good for me if I did! But, for now, I will keep this list short!

Here's the verse that grabbed me this morning:

"Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men" Psalm 107:8 (NIV).

His unfailing love. If love in an action (which I believe it is, more so than a feeling), then the quick start to a very long list of reasons to be grateful is just more proof that yes, the Lord loves me, and His word affirms that He loves me without fail. Amazing. My little pea-brain really can't quite wrap itself around what it means for God - The Lord of All the Earth - to love me unfailingly. Without mistakes, without fault, without gaps or inconsistencies. His love is unfailing. I praise His name for that alone!

Through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, more than enough was done on my behalf than what would be needed to command my praise every second of every hour of ever day. My pastor at church likes to remind us that there's an important phrase in the oh-so-familiar John 3:16 that's often overlooked: "For God so loved the world that He gave." He gave. He gave. He gives and gives and gives. Why? Because He loves us. He loves me. God loves you SO much. He loves me SO much. He loves everyone in my office building, every driver on the road during rush hour, every person waiting in line at Target. And not just a little. He loves us so much that He sacrificed and He gave. Talk about a wonderful deed for men!

And I know I am not alone in knowing that Jesus' sacrificial deed was just the beginning.

Today, I challenge myself (and you, should you be up for a challenge!) to look at the world through the eyes of the Psalmist and what he captures in this verse. His love in unfailing. My challenge, I admit, is to really believe that. To really, truly, deeply grasp that as absolute truth within my soul...truth without doubt. To believe not just in Him, but to believe Him, to believe His word as absolute truth.

His love is unfailing. Unfailing. What does that word mean to you? Let's allow today to be a meditation on just that; I feel confident that the praise the verse requests will flow naturally from our hearts if we grab tightly to that truth!