Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
Hallelujah
Dr. Ron Jacob
Long Island MTC, NY
1 Praise the Lord! O
give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures
forever.
We are just one week away from one of my favorite holidays, Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving has always been a big event for our family and it seems like it is just getting bigger each year. We have more appetizers, entrees, desserts and people because of the new additions to our family.
Unfortunately, holidays like this are the few opportunities we can spend with our extended family. It also gives us an occasion to remember and appreciate the blessings provided to us by the Lord.
Psalm 106:1 begins with the phrase, “Praise the Lord” which is equivalent to “Hallelujah”. It then compels us to give thanks to the Lord for His goodness and for His love which endures and is steadfast.
So basically it says, “Hallelujah (Praise the Lord), thank you God for being good and for a love that continues (endures) and never waivers (steadfast).”
As President of the United States, George Washington proclaimed the first nation-wide thanksgiving celebration in America marking November 26, 1789, "as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many favors of Almighty God"(Hodgson, pp. 159-167). It became an official Federal holiday in 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of "Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens" (Proclamation of Thanksgiving (October 3, 1863) Abraham Lincoln Online).
We Americans are blessed to be part of a country which designates a day for us to show our appreciation and thankfulness to our maker for not just our blessings, but also for His continuous and unending love.
I sometimes wonder if atheists celebrate Thanksgiving and if they do, to whom are they expressing their thanks? For us believers, there is never a question of who receives our praise and thankfulness.
Hallelujah and thank you Lord, Jesus Christ.
We are just one week away from one of my favorite holidays, Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving has always been a big event for our family and it seems like it is just getting bigger each year. We have more appetizers, entrees, desserts and people because of the new additions to our family.
Unfortunately, holidays like this are the few opportunities we can spend with our extended family. It also gives us an occasion to remember and appreciate the blessings provided to us by the Lord.
Psalm 106:1 begins with the phrase, “Praise the Lord” which is equivalent to “Hallelujah”. It then compels us to give thanks to the Lord for His goodness and for His love which endures and is steadfast.
So basically it says, “Hallelujah (Praise the Lord), thank you God for being good and for a love that continues (endures) and never waivers (steadfast).”
As President of the United States, George Washington proclaimed the first nation-wide thanksgiving celebration in America marking November 26, 1789, "as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many favors of Almighty God"(Hodgson, pp. 159-167). It became an official Federal holiday in 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of "Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens" (Proclamation of Thanksgiving (October 3, 1863) Abraham Lincoln Online).
We Americans are blessed to be part of a country which designates a day for us to show our appreciation and thankfulness to our maker for not just our blessings, but also for His continuous and unending love.
I sometimes wonder if atheists celebrate Thanksgiving and if they do, to whom are they expressing their thanks? For us believers, there is never a question of who receives our praise and thankfulness.
Hallelujah and thank you Lord, Jesus Christ.
PRAYER
Dear Lord, thank you for
each and every blessing you provide us with and a love that does not fail. Amen
THOUGHT
FOR THE DAY:
"Thanksgiving keeps us in a position of humility as we acknowledge that every good and perfect gift comes from Him." - marthoma.in/worship
"Thanksgiving keeps us in a position of humility as we acknowledge that every good and perfect gift comes from Him." - marthoma.in/worship