Gratitude 102 –Breaking Your Silence   (Psalm 107:1-2)

Giving thanks is Praise (107:1). Psalm 107 begins the fifth book of the psalms. Think for a moment; Israel’s hymnbook concludes with a chorus of thanksgiving to Yahweh. This doxology of gratitude lingers within the memory of His holy community.

We don’t know the specific setting, but it portrays a worshipper giving thanks to Adonai in a worship gathering.

The word “give thanks -yadah” means expressing praise, giving thanks, or making a public confession- a word uniquely tied to worship. The presence of the Lord + the praise of His child + thanksgiving goes hand in hand.

Praise and worship are so much more than a specific genre of song. Genuine praise and worship grow from a satisfied heart giving thanks to the goodness of our Savior and faithful love that endures forever.

For the Christ-follower, to be in the presence of the Lord through the open door of Jesus Christ is a praiseworthy event. The fact that we can enter into this throne is enough to make the darkest heart rejoice! The more you worship and dwell in His presence, the more thankful you become!

What if we assessed every worship gathering by the amount of thanksgiving and praise from the redeemed? Giving thanks is the heavenly language of Christian worship.

Breaking our Silence: Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever.

Give Thanks in Public (107:1) If we give thanks, where must our thanksgiving occur? Often obscured by English translations is the corporate nature of giving thanks in Psalm 107. The better reading is this: All y’all give thanks to the Lord for He is good.

In the Old Testament, the individual psalms of thanksgiving outnumber the communal psalms- possibly showing that giving thanks begins with the person and then spreads to the community. Likewise, gratitude is meant to spread.

We often hear of people spreading gossip, but what if we were known as gratitude spreaders?

Can you imagine? There is no way that Israel could remain ungrateful when a stream of individuals flowed into the temple giving testimony to the Lord’s marvelous grace. What a picture of how the grace of our Savior changes an entire community. This is the glorious picture of the church found in Hebrews: provoking love and good works.

Breaking our Silence: Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever.

Presenting Thanks (107:1) Did you notice how Psalms 107 began? Give thanks to the Lord… God is reminding His holy people that thanks is given, not withheld. The Scriptures never say repress thanks to the Lord, but GIVE!

What on earth could you ever give the Lord that he wants? Cattle? The sun, moon, or stars? You can give him your thanks.

Give means to freely transfer the possession of something to someone. It’s as if the Psalmist sees the thanksgiving of a redeemed person as an offering presented at the Temple.

The heart of gratitude is a free heart. The Lord won’t twist your arm to be thankful. He wants you to give your thanks freely. When you give thanks, you, in essence, say, “Father, you don’t owe me anything, but I freely give you praise because you give me what I don’t deserve.” When you present your thanks, you acknowledge your dependence.

Why can you depend upon the Lord?

There is no one in the world more trustworthy than Jesus. I find that the more my mouth speaks of depending and thanking, the more my heart hears the words of eternal life.

Breaking our Silence: Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever.

Give thanks with Purpose (107:1) Did you notice how Psalm 107 began? Give thanks to the Lord, He is good, and his love endures forever. On five occasions, this chorus calls the worshippers to give thanks to the only one who is worthy of eternal thanksgiving.

Naturally and environmentally, you are conditioned to be thankful. You probably hear the echo of your parents in your ear when someone gave you candy, “what do you tell them.” The correct answer is thank you.

Naturally, have a longing to be thankful for what you have. I call this lower room thankfulness. In a two-story house, everyone enters on the ground floor. But, being thankful for something is not enough.

Psalm 107 calls us to be thankful to someone. I call this upper room gratitude. After Jesus ascended into glory, Holy Spirit didn’t descend on the disciples in the lower room. Rather, they went to the upper room and experienced the power of the Holy Spirit.

Lower room experiences are not enough. “The worst moment for an atheist is when he is really thankful and has no one to thank.” –G.K. Chesterton

For the Christian, we are not merely thankful for what we have; we are thankful to the only one who can redeem us! In Psalm 107, they are giving glory because the Lord gathered (3), rescued (6), satisfied the thirsty (9), brought them out of darkness (10), and broke their chains apart (14). Only Christ can do this! For this reason, those who experienced abundant life give thanks on purpose. We give thanks to the One who is eternally good.

Breaking our Silence: Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever.

So What?

Psalm 107 was used as a communal call to worship when the redeemed would come with their sacrifice to say amen. Giving thanks is the people of Christ breaking their silence.

The truth is that all should be thankful, but not all will give thanks.  ^{Psalm 107:8} Let them give thanks to the LORD for his faithful love and his wondrous works for all humanity.

Over and over again, the Scriptures show us that Yahweh loves you, but not everyone will receive his love. ^{John 3:16} For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

Would today be the first time that you were thankful TO the Lord?

Breaking our Silence: Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever.

Then this response: "I'm thankful, Papa; I just don't want to say it." 101- being thankful; 102 – giving thanks.

Today- Thanksgiving Response: For the next five minutes, would you give thanks in public?

This week- Thanksgiving Challenge

Daily thank the Lord for his acts of faithful love

Daily thank someone else