So my friend laughed with me, and then admitted that she had also said to Him once, "How are You?" The answer she heard back was, "The same as always!" So good to know that there is "no variation or shadow of turning" with our "Father of lights" from whom we receive "every good and perfect gift" (James 1:17).
This never-changing, faithful and true God has given such an incredible array of blessings. I remember going for a walk on a lovely spring day, when the trees were starting to bud, and blossoms were coming out, and the birds were singing, and the sky was blue, and the breeze was gentle, and the air was sweet, and the almost involuntary response was, "Oh, thank You, God. You are so amazing, and so, so good." I had such a joyful feeling of exaltation and exulting! And I wondered, what do unbelievers or evolutionists do with those feelings that rise up when so much loveliness confronts them? Where do they go to say "Thank you" for such beauty?
There are occasions when I hear my children or grandchildren laughing together, and there is such a joy in that too, that I have to say, "Oh, thank You, Father!" Of course, the list of things to be thankful for could go on and on, and on and on.
When I started writing this post, I wasn't sure where it was going to go, but maybe I'll just harp on a theme I've brought up before, about thankfulness. It is easy to grumble and gripe, but how much more uplifting to express gratitude and count our blessings! There is research in the field of neuroscience that proves attitude affects our physical health, and specifically immunity. So in the middle of this corona situation, practising thankfulness may be what our bodies need to keep us safe. Do you think God was onto something when He told us repeatedly to "Bless the Lord!" and "Praise the Lord!" and "Serve the Lord with gladness" and "Give thanks in all things" and "Rejoice in the Lord always"? There's such a good chance that He knew that as we bless Him, we are blessed.
Did I mention before that 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 makes up a prayer sandwich? Prayer ("pray without ceasing") is the filling sandwiched between "Rejoice always" and "In everything give thanks..." What we call the Lord's prayer has a similar pattern; it starts with acknowledging "Our Father who is in heaven" and takes time to focus on the holiness of His name: "Hallowed be Thy name." It ends with "Thine be the kingdom and the power and the glory." Requests are sandwiched between.
"Hallowed be Your name" leads me to another thought. (I feel as though I'm rambling a bit here, but it's my blog, so it's my privilege, right?) In Psalm 91, I noticed that the last three verses had God saying what He would do for us because we fulfilled three conditions. One of those conditions was "he has known My name." (The other two were "he has set his love upon Me" and "he shall call upon Me.") Because the three conditions were met, He promised to (1) rescue him, (2) set him on high, (3) answer him, (4) be with him in trouble, (5) deliver him, (6) honour him, (7) satisfy him with long life, and (8) "show him My salvation". What He does for us is so far above and beyond what is expected of us.
To "set our love upon Him" when we consider all He has done for us isn't too difficult. To "call upon Him" when we need help comes pretty naturally. To "know His name" may take a little studying and it's a worthwhile subject to research. I gave a list of names of God in my "Oh, magnify the Lord" blog but, of course, He has so many more.
Like, for instance, forever "Faithful and True" (Revelation 19:11).
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