Presenting the Nineteenth Edition for 2006 of the WEEKLY DEVOTIONS:
Celebrating Thanksgiving Day by showing and expressing our gratitude to God
Keep on praying, this world is in great need of it. "Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.â€
Lord, we often complain about our situation and we forget all the requests that have been granted by You. Yes, what a Good and Gracious Father You are indeed for us. Forgive all our iniquities and failures toward You, Father.
Bless the Lord, all you Works of the Lord. Let the earth bless the Lord. Everything growing from the earth bless the Lord. Blessed are you, Lord, in the firmament of Heaven. Praiseworthy and Glorious and exalted above all forever. O sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praise with the harp to our God, who provides rain for the earth and makes grass grow on the hills. As we come in thanksgiving, teach us to use wisely the riches of land and sea and all the blessings which come from Thee. Grant us hearts that know the needs of others that we may give as freely as we have received from Thee.
God amidst His people let us celebrate and Glorify our Lord shouting and rejoicing with songs of Joy. Amen, Alleluia!!!!!!!
Be not afraid, O land;
be glad and rejoice.
Surely the LORD has done great things.
Be not afraid, O wild animals,
for the open pastures are becoming green.
The trees are bearing their fruit;
the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
Be glad, O people of Zion,
rejoice in the LORD your God,
for he has given you
the autumn rains in righteousness.
He sends you abundant showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
"I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm
my great army that I sent among you.
You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
never again will my people be shamed.
Then you will know that I am in Israel,
that I am the LORD your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed. Joel 2:21-27
Yes let us thank God for His bounteousness. Let us not imitate the lepers in the following Bible passage where their requests were answered yet only one leper returned back to thank Jesus Christ and thus render Glory to God the Father.
Ten Healed of Leprosy
Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!"
When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed.
One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.
Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." Luke 17:11-19
The earth has given its fruit: and God, our God has blessed us.
Psalm 67
May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, Selah
that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.
May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you.
May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth. Selah
May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you.
Then the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God, will bless us.
God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia. He waters the mountains from His upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of His work. He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate— bringing forth food from the earth: Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for men. Amen, Alleluia!!!!!!!
