Psalm 107 Reflections
Show the Lord you are grateful and tell others about His good deeds.
vs. 1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
vs. 8 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
vs. 15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
vs. 21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
vs. 31 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
vs 43. Let the one who is wise heed these things and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord.
That’s six verses saying the same thing! From verse 1 to verse 43 we are encouraged to give thanks to God. It’s not forcing us. It says “Let them give thanks” not “You must give thanks.” Being thankful can be forced, like when a parent tells their chid to say thank you to someone. The child may say it out of genuine thankfulness but a lot of times they say it because they have to or they know the unpleasant consequences that will follow. But here that is not the case. These verses express the thankfulness of someone who, because they have received what they don’t deserve, desire to show how thankful they are. But to whom are they thankful for and what has that person done to deserve thanks? GOD. Because of HIS unfailing love and HIS wonderful deeds for us, for me! As if His love for me wasn’t enough, he does good things for me. The greatest display of his love and good deed for me was displayed on the cross. He sacrificed himself to bear my sin and face the rejection of his Father so that God wouldn’t reject me. He loved me so much that he died for me. The good deed he did was taking my sin upon himself so that God would look at me and say “forgiven.” So what do we do now with what God has done for us. We share it!
vs. 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story…
vs. 22 … tell of his works with songs of joy.
vs. 32 Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people and praise him in the council of the elders.
I have a story. Actually I have a lot of stories. The story of the family that God gave me. The story of when Jesus called me into obedience to His will and gave me the promise of eternal life. The story of my Christian high school and college experiences. The stories from mission trips. The story of teaching in Mexico. The story of being in a hospital in Mexico. The story of waiting, not knowing what is next. The story of God providing time after time. Those are just some of the stories I have to tell. What am I to do with all these stories. I’m to tell them, for in telling them I tell of His goodness, power, provision, love, grace, mercy, providence, and compassion. We all have stories. Share them! Verse 32 says they exalted Him and praised Him where there were a lot of people around. Not all my stories are pleasant ones but they all point back to God. My stories remind me to give thanks to God who’s love is unfailing and who has done and continues to do wonderful deeds for me.
