[232 words]
“Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him” (Psalms 28:6-7).
In this psalm, David, inspired by the Holy Spirit, commented on why we should thank God. Our Lord is worthy of our praise because he hears our cries for mercy.
Our society is entrenched in the idea of entitlement. We have been taught that we “deserve” things that we do not. I once saw a news report about how our community came to the aid of a little girl who was sick. Funds rolled in to help her get much needed medical treatment and surgery. But the report of the kind acts of our society was ruined by the almost haughty words of the little girl’s father. He kept repeating that his daughter “deserved” these donations which, by definition, are undeserved gifts.
We do not deserve the help we get from God. He gives his gifts to an undeserving people. He gives his gifts to an undeserving me. And for those gifts, I should fall to my knees and praise him. My heart should leap for joy, and I should sing praises to his name.
Thank you, Lord, for your mercy, kindness, grace and steadfast love!
Larry Fitzgerald
Woodlawn church of Christ
Abilene, TX