Good
Morning All,
Psalm
81:2-3; “Raise a song; sound the tambourine, the sweet lyre with the harp. Blow the trumpet at the new moon, at the full moon, on
our feast day.”
We hardly pay attention to the phases of
the moon anymore. When I was growing up,
I had a neighbor who did everything according to the phases of the moon;
whether it was planting or harvesting or weaning cattle. We just don’t pay any attention to the moon
that much.
It was different with in the Old Testament;
with each new moon, the Israelites marked the start of the month. With it was a celebration. The Jews would go to the Temple for a special
sacrifice, hold a family celebration and in general abstain from work or
business. They would not perform any
fasting and mourning was prohibited. It
was a time to celebrate being God’s chosen people. They would sing the Psalms of praise and play
the joy filled music. They celebrated
the gifts which God had given them.
It is too bad that we no longer follow
that tradition. We usually save our
celebration of God’s gifts to us for Thanksgiving Day. We should really celebrate Thanksgiving Day
every day. God blesses us in so many
fashions that we sometimes fail to see them.
We take so much for granted. We
have come to expect God to deliver exactly what we want when we want it and
when that doesn’t happen according to our wishes; we blame God for abandoning
us. We miss so much of what God gives
us.
We complain about the cost of our
cable/satellite TV bill and how God should provide us more money to watch it;
we miss the beauty of a full moon or the perseids meteor showers. We complain about the cost of food and then
throw 40 % away. We are blessed with
abundant food, a safe environment, comfortable living conditions, and most of
us have good health. God truly blesses
his people.
So we need to try and remember this more
often. We need to be sure that we give
thanks to God for all which he provides to us.
When we focus on what we have; what we don’t have doesn’t measure up. God gives us all good things especially the
gift of salvation through Jesus. His
blessings are beyond our measure so raise a song, sound the tambourine, the
sweet lyre with the harp. Rejoice and
give thanks to God for his blessings.
Dear Father in heaven, your mercies flow over us like a
river. We are truly blessed to be your
children. Help us to see that all good
things come from you and that we receive these every day; not because we are
worthy but because you are loving and full of grace. Keep us mindful that even when we feel
abandoned; you are there to comfort and provide for us. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.
God’s
Peace,
Pastor
Bret
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