Praise and Thanksgiving ~ Choosing Joy and Peace

"Praise, like prayer, is one great means of promoting the growth of the spiritual life.  It helps to remove our burdens, to excite our hope, to increase our faith.  It is a healthful and invigorating exercise which quickens the pulse fo the believer, and nerves him for fresh enterprises in his Master's service."

- Charles Spurgeon -

"O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?"

- Matthew 14:31b -

“I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart;

I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.

I will be glad and rejoice in thee:

I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.

And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee:

for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.

Sing praises to the LORD, which dwelleth in Zion:

declare among the people his doings.

Have mercy upon me, O LORD; …

That I may shew forth all thy praise 

in the gates of the daughter of Zion:

I will rejoice in thy salvation.”

~ taken from Psalm 9 ~

This morning as I was studying and meditating on God's word, I was so convicted as I read.  Just in Psalms alone we are told over and over to praise the Lord, to thank the Lord, to sing to the Lord, to rejoice in the Lord, to declare His name.  Our Lord has blessed us beyond words.  His saving grace towards His children and all His benefits to us to innumerable!  As Christians, we have no reason to be down cast.  We have every reason to be full of joy and praising His name at all times.  Truly, how can we not be full of joy?! May the Lord forgive us for the times when we take our eyes off of Him - for this is when we lose our joy and peace.

"For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he."

- Proverbs 23:7a -

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace,

whose mind is stayed on thee:

because he trusteth in thee."

- Isaiah 26:3 -

Joy is a choice.  Peace is a choice.  It is all in where we choose to focus - where we choose to put our minds.  And we must remember that:

"Ye are of God, little children,

and have overcome them:

because greater is he that is in you,

than he that is in the world."

~ 1 John 4:4 ~

Let us choose to set our minds on praising and thanking our Lord, to have joy and peace in Him, and to declare His wonderful name and amazing works.  As we look to His word and think on Him and all He has done, who can help but not praise and thank Him with a joyful heart?

May ye each have a wonderful weekend, and be encouraged and refreshed spiritually!

~Brittay

Giving Thanks ~ The Attitude that Changes Everything

Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday in the Alexander home.  And as it is approaching we are being reminded of the concept of gratitude once again.  Truly, there is so much to be thankful for!
This blog post from a favorite blog we follow is a beautiful reminder to thankfulness.  Hope you enjoy it and that it is an encouragement to each of you.  And thankfulness really is catchy, so try it. :-)


In This Home, We Give Thanks: The Attitude That Changes Everything

I don’t remember exactly when it started, or even why.

But I got into the habit of making up these games when I was a young girl.

Well, they weren’t really “games” but that’s what I called them and it was my way of encouraging myself to do what was right…even when I didn’t necessarily feel like it.

And for some reason, it kind of worked.

Not always, but often.

When I was a waitress, it was the Serve-the-Customer-Cheerfully Game.

I was determined to be pleasant to my customers, no matter how rude he or she was to me. It was a game I could always “win” because it solely depended on me doing my part.  Not only did I win, but I frequently won over even the toughest of customers.

When I was a tired mom with small children, I played the Greet-Your-Child-With-A-Warm-Smile game.

I was committed to beaming at my little ones…even when all I really felt was bleary-eyed and grumpy. Another winning game because I simply had to smile and I usually got a smile in return. And that way, we both had a better start to our day.

Then somewhere along the way, I began the We-Have-So-Much-to-be-Thankful-For Game.

And this game is my very favorite!

Whatever was going on in our day – in our lives – I had to find something for which I could be thankful.

Maybe I didn’t get enough sleep, but I could be thankful that I had a warm, soft bed to sleep in (when I could sleep, that is).

Maybe my laundry room was full-to-overflowing, but I could be thankful that at least we had clothes…and children to put them on.

Some situations were more challenging for which to be thankful, but even there…..

Maybe our daughter couldn’t walk, but we’re thankful that she can talk…and talk…and talk.

Maybe my mother-in-law has Alzheimer’s, but we can be thankful that she lives with us so we can care for her in these difficult days.

One of the nicest things about this game is that it’s surprisingly catchy!

Like the other night, for instance. The boys were starting to complain about cleaning the dinner dishes when I saw one of our sons change his expression right in the middle of his sentence. He stopped suddenly as he had this ah-ha moment and then slowly said to no one in particular, “Well, I guess we could be thankful that we have a family to feed.”

Then a moment later, “…and that we had dinner to eat. And that’s why we have all these dishes to clean up.”

I smiled at him.

Right. Exactly.

This is the attitude that changes everything.

Thankfulness might not change our circumstances, but it can sure change our perspective and even our hearts. And that right there can make all the difference in the world. Starting right here in our very own home.

So in this home, we give thanks.

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. ~ I Thess. 5:18

With thanks for you,

 

Owner at Club 31 Women

Wife of Matthew Jacobson

~Brittany

Exhortation on Worry ~ Looking with Eyes of Thanksgiving and Faith

"Be careful for nothing."

Philippians 4:6

Do you cross rivers before you come to them, dread troubles that never come, expect evil from the Lord instead of good?  In other words is your soul full of unnecessary care?  For that is what the word "careful" means - unnecessary care.
"Do not worry" is a plain and simple command, but it is such a difficult one to follow.  M. D. Babcock has given a few beneficial suggestions for the person who feels defeated because of the common ailment of worry.  "The anxious Christian hurts more than himself; he hurts the faith of those who know him and the good name of his Lord Who has promised to supply all his needs.  There is nothing which we cannot pray about.  Go deeper into the text: 'But in everything by prayer and supplication let your requests be made known unto God.'  What we can take to God we can trust to God.  What we put our fidelity into, He will perfect by His faithfulness.  While we work for the best, He works the best for us.  We may not succeed as we hoped; we may have discipline we little expected, but the Father knows what His child needs.  What God has for us to do we can do, or to bear we can bear.  Is there not enough in His ocean to fill our pitcher?  With the need of every day will come His promised supply - 'My grace is sufficient for thee.'
"Do not forget the words further on in the text: 'with thanksgiving.'  Be on the lookout for mercies.  Blessings brighten when we count them.  Out of determination of the heart the eyes see.  If you want to be gloomy, there's gloom enough to keep you glum; if you want to be glad, there's gleam enough to keep you glad.  Better lose count in enumerating your blessings than lose your blessings in telling your troubles.
"Unbraid the verse into three cords and bind yourself to God with them in trustful, prayerful, thankful bonds, - Anxious for nothing, Prayerful for everything, Thankful for anything - 'and the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.' "  (from Thoughts for Every-Day Living.)
- Steams in the Desert, Volume 2, December 10th
~Brittany

Christian Cheer

"Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds."

~ Psalm 149:5 ~

"Yes," said Amos R. Wells, "let all Christians sing, even on beds of pain.  Let all Christians sing, even songs in the night, even songs in prison, like Paul and Silas.  Few lives are so songful as they might be and should be.  Most lives are groanful.  Most lives are full of complaint, meditated if not uttered aloud.

"As Phillips Brooks once cheerily said, ' True religion sings here, and will sing more hereafter.  Distrust your religion unless it is cheerful, unless it turns every act and deed to music, and exults in attempts to catch the harmony of the new life.'  We read of the mystical 'music of the spheres,' that unheard anthem of praise made by the stars in their majestic march through the sky.  May it not be made, not by the stars at all, but by praiseful human hearts?

"It is always possible to find an excuse for good cheer, a fine reason for singing.  Here is an excuse that Oliver Herford once thought up:

I heard a bird sing

In the dark of December;

A magnificent thing

And sweet to remember:

"We are nearer to spring

Than we were in September."

I heard a brid sing

In the dark of December.

"Yes, and in the same vein, however gloomy our surroundings may be, we can always remember that we are one day nearer heaven than we were yesterday - one day nearer our eternal joy and peace.

"What if it is dark around us now, and cold, and stormy?  The endless spring is drawing near!  Flowers are coming, bird songs are coming, soft breezes adn blue skies are coming!  Every dark day brings the bright days nearer."

",We cannont weigh or number our blessings, neither can we weight or number our feelings of gratitude to Thee, O God."

- Streams in the Dessert, Vol. 2, December 4th

~Brittany

The Will of God ~ Give Thanks

~Brittany

"Peace lies in the trusting acceptance of
His design, His gifts, His appointment of place, position, capacity.

It was thus that the Son of Man came to earth--embracing
all that the Father willed Him to be,

usurping nothing--no work, not even a word--that
the Father had not given Him."
~ Elisabeth Elliot ~

"Children of the jungle tribe I knew years ago did not complain
because they had not been taught to."

~ Elisabeth Elliot ~

"Lord, we give You thanks for all that You in Your mercy have given us
to be and to do and to have.
Deliver us, Lord, from all greed to be and to do and to have anything
not in accord with Your holy purposes.
Teach us to rest quietly in Your promise to supply,
recognizing that if we don't have it we don't need it.
Teach us to desire Your will--nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else.
For Jesus' sake.  Amen."

~ Elisabeth Elliot ~

-taken from her book, Keep a Quiet Heart

~Brittany