Be Thankful

CALL TO PRAYER

By: Stephen Osei Kuffour

Date: 25.12.2022

Title: Be Thankful

If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, when their wrath was kindled against us; then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul.  (Psalm 124:2-4 NKJV)

The Bible tells the story of ten men healed from their leprosy by the Lord Jesus. One day, our Lord Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem and when He reached the border between Galilee and Samaria, He met ten men having leprosy. When these men saw Jesus, they cried out to Him to have mercy on them. Our Lord Jesus looked at them and asked them to go and show themselves to the priests. As they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy. After their healing, only one among the ten returned to thank the Lord Jesus (Luke 17:11-17).

This year began with Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine, and there were rumors and the possibility of World War III. COVID-19 was still lurking around, and the impact of the Pandemic and the Invasion resulted in a global rise in Inflation and the rise of Fuel and Energy Prices. Through it all, the Lord cared for us and kept us and our loved ones safe. Let’s, therefore, Thank God for the gift of life, His protection, and His provision. The enemy planned a lot of evil against us, but all his plans were rendered futile by the Lord. He delivered us from accident, sickness, death, etc.

Maybe you lost a loved one or your Job within the year and experienced some difficulties and diverse forms of Trials. You may be asking yourself why you should thank God despite all the difficulties you experienced. Are we supposed to thank God only when things are going great for us? The answer is No! The word of God teaches us to thank God in all things and at all times, whether good or bad (1 Thess 5:18, Phil 4:6-7). This is because the Lord knows best. He knows why He allowed you to experience these, Trials.

We thank Him in difficult times because we know that He loves us and will work all things together for our good (Rom 8:28). The problem with most Christians is that we spend a lot of time focusing and worrying about the few things we don’t have instead of the many things the Lord has blessed us with. We then conclude that the Lord has not done enough for us. Don’t be ungrateful! Don’t be like the other nine Lepers who didn’t return to Thank the Lord. Once you are alive, it’s reason enough to be grateful to God.

If even you think you don’t have any reason to be grateful to God, Thank Him for the gift of Salvation. It is not easy to be saved. Some of us come from a background of Idol-Worshipping. I recently found out that my grandfather (my mother’s father) whom I never met was into Idol-Worshiping. It took the glorious Grace of God to rescue us from the path of darkness and death and bring us into light and life. We didn’t pay anything for it. Our heavenly father gave it to us freely (Eph 2:8-9).

Beloved in the Lord, God has done a lot for us and our loved ones throughout the year. Let’s therefore thank Him and give Him the praise and the Glory He deserves.

Prayer Point:

Let’s thank God for His Word today and the answers to all the prayers we prayed throughout the year.

God bless you all