Thoughts for the Day

Praise the Lord!
How good it is to sing praises to our God;
for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting....

He heals the broken-hearted,
and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars;
he gives to all of them their names.
Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
his understanding is beyond measure.
The Lord lifts up the downtrodden;
he casts the wicked to the ground.

Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God on the lyre.
He covers the heavens with clouds,
prepares rain for the earth,
makes grass grow on the hills.
He gives to the animals their food,
and to the young ravens when they cry....

Praise the Lord!

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Only part of Psalm 147 is used above, but we should notice that if we ever thought that our concerns were too small for Almighty God to notice, we are wrong. The God who designed and planned our world, yet names the tiniest star and feeds the smallest bird. He will also heal those in need and bind up their wounds.

The theme of God who cares for everything in his world is also found in Isiah 61.1-2 - words which we will hear again this Christmas as we celebrate the coming of the baby who was to be the Messiah:

'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the broken-hearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;'

Jesus was to make this his life's work and in doing so fulfilled God's promises to us His people. Our response to this is simply to praise God!

Lord God,
we praise You for Your care of all Your world;
for Your plans which we barely understand;
and for Your concern for each tiny detail.
May our gratitude never cease,
and our praise never fail.
Help us not to take You for granted,
or to forget that You care for us
and all Your creatures always.
Amen.