This morning I woke up with a very grateful heart. I woke up with a thankful heart. I woke up and I am thankful for that! I am thankful that God gave me another opportunity to serve Him. I am thankful that God gave me another opportunity to praise Him. Hallelujah!! I am thankful that God gave me another opportunity today to live a life of purpose, because we can only live our lives day by day. You can’t live tomorrow. You can only live today!

As I prayed, I also repented for the things that I didn’t get right. I prayed that Holy Spirit would expose the areas of my life where I am missing the mark so that I can be aware and not keep going in the wrong direction.

I prayed for you. I prayed for those I don’t know. I prayed and thanked God.

With us just finishing up Hebrews, I didn’t have a specific book of the Bible this morning, but Ephesians has been coming up so I believe that’s where we will go next. But I did something this morning that I used to do all the time before I started studying whole books of the Bible. I flipped my Bible open for a Scriptural Surprise. And as it was before, God revealed His Word to me in Psalms 138, aptly entitled: A Thankful Heart!

It’s only 8 verses, so I want to strengthen our faith by the hearing of God’s Holy Word.

Psalm 138

A psalm of David.

1 I give you thanks, O Lord, with all my heart;
    I will sing your praises before the gods.
2 I bow before your holy Temple as I worship.
    I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness;
for your promises are backed
    by all the honor of your name.
3 As soon as I pray, you answer me;
    you encourage me by giving me strength.

4 Every king in all the earth will thank you, Lord,
    for all of them will hear your words.
5 Yes, they will sing about the Lord’s ways,
    for the glory of the Lord is very great.
6 Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble,
    but he keeps his distance from the proud.

7 Though I am surrounded by troubles,
    you will protect me from the anger of my enemies.
You reach out your hand,
    and the power of your right hand saves me.
8 The Lord will work out his plans for my life—
    for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.
    Don’t abandon me, for you made me.

Verses 3 and 8 really resonated for me and when I read the study notes in my bible, Dr. Tony Evans just brought the message right on home with this: We can be brutally honest with God. Even while we praise him, we can ask him not to let us down - particularly in times of crises - knowing he will answer for our good and His glory.

I wrote in my journal: The answer to my prayers are for my good and for God’s glory.

When you think about it like that, it makes you forget about whether God answered HOW you wanted Him to answer because you are now aware that His answers are for our good and for His glory.

SALVATION PRAYER

If you don’t know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior and you’re not a believer, but you have a desire to be, all you have to do is openly confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9). When you pray that prayer, you are saved. Get connected with a good, bible-based church in your community, stay connected to other believers, and start having daily conversations through prayer with God every single day. Welcome to your new life with Jesus Christ!!!

ASSIGNMENTS

1. What did Holy Spirit say to you in your conversation with Him this morning?

2. How did today’s Psalm encourage you today?

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