For His Glory,
Joe & Shirley
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"Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and bless His name." Psalm 100:4 (emphases added)
A community that comes together in "true worship" will meet for that purpose in God's Church every week to offer true worship to Him.
We are entering the calendar year 2008, and the Lord has shown me this will be a year of "New Gates," and we will enter these new gates with thanksgiving.
A thankful heart is a worshipping heart towards God the Creator. It is not a heart that is selfish, wanting to claim credit for everything done or a heart needing self-affirmation to receive approval from man. Thankful hearts know their "position in God" through Jesus Christ as Lord, and are very thankful for that.King David offered many songs and prayers of thanksgiving unto God. David knew that without God, he could do nothing to be the powerful ruler that God took him to be--from where he once resided as the shepherd boy tending sheep in the back side of the wilderness. Moses understood that as well. It seems the desert brings out the best or the worst in all of us. If we look unto Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our faith, then we cannot help but have a thankful heart.
"He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel." 1 Chronicles 16:4 (emphases added)
King David appointed Levites to lead in prayer, thanksgiving and praise. At the heart of this chapter is thanksgiving. Beginning in verse 7, David recited his own "Psalm of thanks to the LORD." The verses following reveal a beautiful song of gratitude to God.
True worship of God comes forth from grateful hearts. Feelings such as bitterness, envy, hostility and pride disqualify one from genuine worship. Thanksgiving opens up the door of the heart toward God in such a way that the individual is freed for true worship of God. Everywhere in Scripture, this spirit of thanksgiving is revealed as vital to our worship experience.
The only missing ingredient from praise and worship is people who do not have a thankful heart. We are to be a thankful people to God for our lives, our country, our churches, our families, our natural resources, our beautiful mornings, our many manifold blessings, and our ability to praise Him! Thanksgiving is the vital ingredient God wants us to offer back to Him, our awesome Creator!
Everyone that has breath, let us praise the Lord! This is the season to be thankful, thus, let us today and forevermore Worship Him in Thanksgiving!
Always a Voice for Our Lord,
John Mark and Sandy Pool
Word to the World Ministries
Email: MarkandSandyPool@aol.com
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