Psalm 139:17. ‘How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them!
Grace and peace, mercy, LOVE and forgiveness to you my fellow saints in Christ from God our Father, this last Sunday of August in this crazy year of 2020! Our heavenly Father desires that we use all those gifts to withstand whatever adversity we’re going through, assured in the knowledge that He cares for us and won’t forsake us under any circumstances. Faith friends, faith, that’s what those gifts ought to grow in us. But enough of me, (smile) it’s Sunday morning, which means it’s time to celebrate the Lord’s Day with some praise, thanksgiving and worship.
And plenty of us still can’t go to the physical sanctuary and worship together, so we’ll do it by technology, as we’ve been doing for the last how long. Hn! Did you ever imagine there’d come a day when we couldn’t gather together physically and hug and kiss and worship our God? But that’s what faith is all about; even in adversity we find a way to get the job done.
And to open our worship I decided that the most appropriate hymn for today would be our old favourite written by Johnson Oatman Jr. titled ‘Count Your Blessings!’ That decision was made because yesterday we spoke about having an attitude of continuous prayer and giving thanks in all circumstances, as well as counting our blessings. And you ask, what’s the purpose of counting our blessings? Well it’s simple: ‘to be grateful for the good things in your life, often to stop yourself becoming too unhappy about the bad things.’
Yeh mih people, to keep us joyful in the Lord our God, remembering that the joy of the Lord is our strength. And the website http://www.godtube acclaims: “Count Your Blessings” is a wonderful song to sing any day of the year as a reminder of the many blessings of God, even during hardships. You will feel joy and contentment after joining in with this hymn!’ Wow!
So since we counted our blessings yesterday, and got such a great number (smile) we should have no problems in bursting out in sacrificial praise this morning. So all together now, in perfect harmony, in an up-tempo beat, let’s remember our many blessings and give our wonderful God much thanks and praise for them.
‘When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed, When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, Count your many blessings, name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done. (Refrain: Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your blessings, see what God hath done; Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your many blessings, see what God hath done.) Are you ever burdened with a load of care? Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear? Count your many blessings, ev’ry doubt will fly, And you will be singing as the days go by. [Refrain]
When you look at others with their lands and gold, Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold; Count your many blessings, money cannot buy Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high. [Refrain] So, amid the conflict, whether great or small, Do not be discouraged, God is over all; Count your many blessings, angels will attend, Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end. Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your blessings, see what God hath done; Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your many blessings, see what God hath done.’
Yes friends, we did find joy and contentment after singing that song! Oh mih bredrin, when we spend time counting our blessings, we really see what God has done and is still doing in our lives! The website http://www.godtube expresses it this way: ‘God truly gives us so many blessings each and every single day. Some may even be so small that we might overlook them. The classic hymn ‘Count Your Blessings’ truly reminds us to stop and give thanks for all God has done in our lives. This is definitely a pause we all need to take. Amen.’ And in this increasingly busy, confused and uncertain world, we all need to make that pause every so often, when the cares of the world start closing in on us.
Now here’s an amazing scripture form Bruh David from Psalm 40 – Praise for answered prayer – describing just how marvellous and generous our God is to us. ‘Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order (recounted) unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.’ (Ps. 40:5) And that’s the awesome truth my brethren, for as godtube says above, some of them are so small that we tend to overlook them.
And in Psalm 139 – The everlasting presence and power of God – Bruh David declares (yesss!): ‘How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.’ (Ps. 139:17-18) And if you think that’s all, please listen to Bruh Paul’s greeting to the Ephesians. ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.’ (Eph. 1:3)
Yes friends, Bruh Paul is praising the Lord because He has bestowed all spiritual blessings on His people. And the scholars offer this synopsis of that verse. ‘These spiritual benefits are granted to the believer and are retained in heaven for him, being progressively dispersed to him on earth in accord with his need and spiritual growth….This verse, therefore, makes five points: (1) What has God done? He has blessed us. (2) With what? With every spiritual blessing. (3) When? In eternity past. (4) Where are these blessings? In heaven. (5) How did God do this? By Christ.’
Oh precious people, what a marvellous God we serve, one who has our wellbeing uppermost in His mind and blesses us accordingly. I don’t know what more we can ask for nuh. And we’ll end with this interesting quote from whom I don’t know (smile), but it is very relevant. ‘If you always find yourself numbering your troubles, you will never find time counting your blessings. There is no use becoming frustrated in your difficulties while you have all opportunities hiding in them for a turnover.’
Let’s ponder those words today nuh, as we enjoy the Lord’s day. Much LOVE!
…if you are a believer…counting one’s blessings…ought to come naturally…
SCRIP-BITS 