"Our Merciful God"

"O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever." (Psalms 107:1)

 Just for your information, understanding and knowledge go hand in hand; I know several people that know a whole lot of stuff, but they lack understanding, which is needed to put what they know to good use. Something that I believe Solomon was writing about when he spoke of wisdom; you can know a whole lot of stuff, but if you do not understand what you know, then you are just a fool filled with knowledge. Three things are spelled out for us here today; to give thanks to God, for He is good, because His mercy endures for ever. Sometimes the trials we go through might not even be for us, they could be for someone else that might be watching our life, wanting to see just how real the faith that we claim actually is. We are better witnesses of God's goodness when we are being tested then when we are being showered with blessing; who wouldn't appear happy when they are being blessed? But you start to rejoice while your stuff is being taken away, then people take notice. That is pretty much what giving thanks is all about, it is to praise and to celebrate the goodness of God in our lives. Whether or not we feel like rejoicing is not really the question; we give thanks because of who God is, not because of how we might feel; and God is good, all the time! I really missed the radio for about three days. You go without something that feeds you spiritually for a period of time and you can begin to feel weak, maybe even a little discouraged. I heard at least three messages yesterday that spoke on this subject of giving God praise through the trial. We know that it is what we are meant to do; we might even practice our reactions in our head, just to prepare ourselves in case something might happen; but doing it and thinking about dong it are sometimes worlds apart, literally! Is He still worthy of praise in your trial? I sure hope that He is, because you need His mercy with or without the trial; the trial just reminds us how weak and vulnerable we really are; but our God is always strong! Whether you are going through the worst trial of your life, or you are being showered upon with tons of blessings, your need for God's strength is always the same; high or low you are still the same, weak and vulnerable...

 "Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again -rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:4-7) NLT