“I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
Psalms 34:1 NKJV
Welcome to the 52nd and final weekly devotional recap of the year! This week we were reminded of the perfect gift we have in salvation, the need to keep trusting God and the importance of praise, thanksgiving and generosity.
On Monday, we looked at ‘The perfect gift’, where we were reminded of the reason for the season-Jesus. In the sacrifice of Jesus, we have received the best gift we could ever receive-eternal life, and all we had to do was believe (John 3:16). In this season and beyond, we mustn’t forget to share the good news about salvation with everyone, the perfect gift that gives on giving.
The next day, we were reminded to trust God regardless of how the year might’ve turned out. We looked at the lives of Joseph and David, men who received a word from God and the immediate circumstances didn’t reflect it; however, they eventually saw the manifestation of God’s promises. You might’ve received a word from God at the beginning of the year, and it’s currently not looking like that word would be fulfilled; don’t lose hope, God’s plans for you are of good and His timing is always perfect (Jeremiah 29:11).
On Wednesday, we started a two-part series, “Giving and Thanksgiving”. We were reminded of reasons to be thankful as the year comes to an end. We might not have everything we want now, but we’ve seen the goodness of God, received words of prophecies, seen the Gospel prevail, these and many more are reasons to be thankful. In addition, we were reminded that giving is an act of worship to God. We don’t wait for conditions to be perfect to give, rather we give knowing that God is our source and everything we have comes from him.
We rounded that series up on Thursday with a reminder on how to give. Here, we were encouraged to give freely and cheerfully, as this is the type of giving that’s acceptable to God (2 Corinthians 9:7). Furthermore, we learnt that giving is not an obligation to fulfil rather a gift and a privilege to enjoy, it’s an act that blesses both the giver and receiver; so we should cherish and make optimum use of every opportunity we have to give whether materially or otherwise.
We ended the week with a reminder to praise God always. As we think about the blessings of God in our lives, we should respond appropriately in thanksgiving. We must live a life of continuous, consistent thanksgiving to God because He’s deserving of it (Psalm 136).
Dear believer, it’s the last day in the year 2022, God has been good to you and the only fitting response is thanksgiving. Take out sometime today to intentionally give thanks to God.
Happy New Year in advance!