Attitude of Gratitude

I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1

I could feel the panic welling up inside me as I turned over in my head all the horrible, hopeless impending consequences should my favored presidential candidate not win the election. I thought about my grandchildren and grieved that they would never know the United States of America that I and their parents have known. How will they ever prosper in a country and a world that seems to be spinning out of control and is so far from the country and world that I grew up in?

The more I thought about these things, the more questions raced through my mind and the more hopeless and panicked I felt until I was bereft of any peace, and my mind was spinning as fast as the out-of-control world I perceived.

Have you ever noticed that worry wreaks havoc in our lives? We start to worry and the worry seems small and harmless. We can even justify the worry as informed concern. But in reality, this seemingly harmless worry leads us dangerously astray. No longer are we leaning on the everlasting arms, but on our own understanding.

I believe there is a remedy for worry and that is gratitude. Worry wreaks havoc but gratitude grounds us in peace. I’m not talking about simply being thankful. No, I’m talking about being grateful–that profound feeling of appreciation.

When we are grateful, we are keenly aware of the good in our life and the source of that good. As believers in Jesus Christ, not only do we know that the source of our good is Jesus, but we also know that both are eternal and now our gratitude is compounded leading us to be even more grateful.

Psalm 9:1 says, “I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.”

When we see the word “LORD” in Scripture, the writer is referring to the name of God and not the general term “lord”, which means master or a title of nobility. “LORD” is a translation of the Hebrew name for God, YHWH, which means “He Who Makes That Which Has Been Made.”

If we give thanks to the LORD, He Who Makes That Which Has Been Made, we are not just saying “thank you.” We are expressing that we know where our present and future good comes from and its source is the very creator of all things and this is what grounds us in peace.

So, even if the election doesn’t go as I hope, I will still tell of all YHWH’s wonderful deeds because I am grateful that none of this catches Him off guard and I know my grandchildren's futures aren’t assured through a donkey or an elephant, but through the blood of the Lamb.