Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
—Psalm 107:8
Scripture:
In the Old Testament we find an interesting story of how King Jehoshaphat took an uncommon approach when his enemies waged war against him. “After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the Lord and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang: ‘Give thanks to the Lord; his faithful love endures forever!’” (2 Chronicles 20:21 NLT).
Imagine the scene: “All right, guys, here’s the plan today. The enemy soldiers are out there, armed to the teeth. So, our first wave of attack will be musical. We’re sending out the choir.” If I’d been one of those choir members, I might have wondered whether the king liked our music. But God had directed Jehoshaphat in this unusual battle tactic.
The result was nothing short of amazing. “At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped” (verses 22–24 NLT).
Good things happen when God’s people prioritize thanking and praising the Lord. It’s a simple lesson, but one that’s shockingly easy to forget.
Luke 17:11–19 tells the story of Jesus’ encounter with ten men who had leprosy. When the men saw Jesus approaching their village, they cried out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” (verse 13 NLT). And with a single instruction from Him, the men were healed. Their leprosy disappeared. Their lives were changed forever.
Verse 15 says, “One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, ‘Praise God!’” (NLT). One out of ten thanked Jesus. That percentage surprised even the Lord Himself.
“Jesus asked, ‘Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?’” (verses 17–18 NLT).
It’s not so much that Jesus was offended by the inconsiderate reactions of the other nine; it was more of a concern that they were going to miss out on the blessings that come when people express their thanks to God.
Of course, few of us would dare shake our heads at the lack of response from the inconsiderate nine. If we could do an inventory of the number of times God has answered our prayers and then compare that to the number of times we’ve thanked Him, we probably would cringe at the results.
The psalmist wrote, “Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them” (Psalm 107:8 NLT).
Let that be our daily priority.
Reflection question: How can you be more proactive in giving thanks to God for His blessings in your life?
DAILY DEVOTIONS, NEWS AND INFORMATION 