Unshackled Moment ~ July 29 ~ Yet I Will Praise Him

It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O Most High

Psalm 92:1

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

Psalm 100:4

I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

Psalm 34:1

It truly s a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and I have learned from experience that having an attitude of gratitude does actually make a difference. You really can't hold onto anger or be bitter and be grateful at the same time. But being grateful is not about self deception or selective blindness. Sometimes things go wrong. Sometimes life is unfair and painful. Sometimes it feels like everything is going wrong or at least not going right.

My boss and I had one of those days at work yesterday. No one got hurt and nothing blew up, but we didn't get one thing accomplished that we needed to. It wasn't for lack of trying. Some of it just doesn't even make sense. But thinngs just weren't going together as they should. Things were breaking when they shouldn't. And so on until my boss finally called it a day and quit in frustration. We'll try again today.

At one point he said, "One of us must not be doing right. You think it's me or you?" Because we feel that way sometimes. We  reap what we sow, so when things go wrong we wonder what we've done to tick God off. While it's true that we reap what we sew, it's also true that no matter what you plant or how diligent you watch it, you're going to get weeds in the garden.;  It's part of life in a fallen world. And it's also true that while you planted your good fruit seeds the enemy comes along behind you and plantes tares in the night.

Sometimes we get lax and sit on our laurels and let things crop up in our life that lead to judgement. But sometimes things just go wrong. Life is hard sometimes even when there are things to be grateful about. Just because we can and should praise God with a thankful heart doesn't mean we're looking at the world through rose colored glasses. Sometimes we're simply getting a glimpse of what is to come.

Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls ~ Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. 

Habakkuk 3:17-18