The Thanksgiving month

Psalm 145
Intro...In sports when athletes celebrate by either pointing up or kneeling down, or thanking God in the interview or acceptance speech
• Some people may wonder why everyone is thanking God…today we’ll review the reasons why we continually and publically thank God.
• This month, 30 days of Thanksgiving… Bizzarro not rushing in Santa

Text: Psalm 145: 1-4, 8-9, 18, 21

Thesis: God is to be praised for his greatness, his tender mercies, his power, his providence and his answers to our prayers. Our job is to continue to speak of God’s majesty to each generation.
• Psalm 145 is an incomparable Psalm of praise written by David.

God is praised for his unsearchable greatness, majesty and awesome acts, v. 1-3
• There really is no way to describe God and his greatness. His greatness is beyond discovery…
• Literally, “To his mightinesses there is no investigation.” All in God is unlimited and eternal.
• When you’ve seen God do miraculous things, you find yourself without words.
• Sunsets, lightning storms, births etc. others?
• What should we do when we find ourselves at a loss for word because of God’s greatness? Extol: lift up, praise highly his name.
• “Seeing that God still continues his benefits toward us, we ought never to be weary in praising him for the same.”

God is praised for his mighty acts to each generation, v. 4-7
• My kids love it when I tell them stories…it’s my job to also make sure I pass on the stories of our faith with the same excitement and passion. Kelley and I both do that…
• “God’s creating and redeeming acts are recorded in His word; but His wondrous providential dealings with mankind must be handed down by tradition, from generation to generation; for they are in continual occurrence, and consequently innumerable.”
• In telling these stories we cause others to praise God and we find that our own accomplishments become dwarfed in comparison with the mighty acts of God.

God is praised for his goodness and tender mercies to all, v. 8-9
• V.8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.
• Our praise should express admiration, appreciation and thanks.
• Considering all that God does for us what could be more natural than outbursts of heartfelt praise?
• As we read through the Psalms, we notice all the praise given to God for his creation, his blessings, his forgiveness, but also for who he is: loving, kind, just, faithful and patient.
• In what ways have you recently praised God? Let’s take a moment and do that right now. Today, this week, what can you praise God for?

God is praised for his power and kingdom, v. 10-13
• I hope you have experienced God’s power recently. Pray and ask God to become very real and powerful in your life. Learn to trust him for everything.
• God rules over an everlasting kingdom. Any kingdom we can come up with in any book or movie…God rules them all.

God is praised for his kindness to the distressed, v. 14
• There is something we can all relate to, we’ve all been distressed, worried, concerned.
• The emphasis is on God’s common grace to all of humanity.
• This grace is available to all, even those who think there is no God.

God is praised for his provision, v. 15-17
• He is the source of all our daily needs.
• This relates back to my opening point, giving God the credit in everything.
• He is righteous and kind in his dealings with us (thankfully).

God is praised because He hears and answers prayer, v. 18-20
• These verses should be an encouragement to all of us to keep praying.
• He remains close to those who call on him, hears our cries and rescues us.
• The wicked await an eternity of living forever away from the presence of God in the lake of fire. Rev. 20:11-15

Conclusion:
(Bottom line, at the end of the day…)
All should praise him, v. 21

In review, God is praised, or thanked because:
• his unsearchable greatness, majesty and awesome acts
• his mighty acts to each generation
• his goodness and tender mercies to all
• his power and kingdom
• his kindness to the distressed
• his providence
• He hears and answers prayer

In encourage you to use a Psalm like this as a daily reminder throughout this month of thanksgiving.

"In 1636, amid the darkness of the Thirty Years' War, a German pastor, Martin Rinkart, is said to have buried five thousand of his parishioners in one year, and average of fifteen a day.

His parish was ravaged by war, death, and economic disaster. In the heart of that darkness, with the cries of fear outside his window, he sat down and wrote this table grace for his children:

'Now thank we all our God / With heart and hands and voices;/ Who wondrous things had done,/ In whom His world rejoices. /Who, from our mother's arms,/Hath led us on our way/ With countless gifts of love/ And still is ours today.'

Here was a man who knew thanksgiving comes from love of God, not from outward circumstances.