How important it is that we learn to respond to Jesus from the depths of our hearts. For us to respond from the depths of our hearts, we need to have received His love deep down there. We need to regularly think or meditate before the Lord about what He has done for us. It’s important that we ask Him to give us a revelation of this. This will help lead us into a place of heartfelt response.
I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart. Thanksgiving really is the password into His Presence. I will enter His courts with praise.
As we approach Him, with hearts filled with appreciation first for who He is, and then for all He has done, we will easily engage our hearts with His.
It’s easy to praise and give thanksgiving when things are going well. However, the Bible advises us to give thanks and praise in all situations.
Ps 71, v 20-24. David models this in this Psalm. It’s this ability to praise even in the storm, that positions us for mighty breakthrough. We know of the walls of Jericho coming down…Jeremiah 6 v 20
True gratitude moves you to respond with generosity of heart. A generous heart wants to share itself in every way, first with God and then with man. A generous heart is so grateful that it’s moved to respond by looking for who it can pour into. The goodness of God cannot be contained. It was designed to be shared. The Trinity sets the example in the way it honours and shares with each other. We are called to live like that.
Firstly, we are usually moved, to give in response to what we have received as mentioned above. Secondly, we are then moved to give of ourselves in worship to Jesus, because this is how we enter into freedom and begin to look more like Jesus. This is where the overflow happens and we are caught up in lifting hearts of worship and love, to the One who adores us. This is what gives Him pleasure.
This was what Jesus came to open the way for us to enter into in the new and better covenant. Having shed His blood on the Cross for us, we enter into so much more than those under the Old Testament. David’s heart of gratitude, praise and worship really desired this, that he was able to draw into his time the 24/7 worship reserved for new covenant.
Jesus opened His Arms wide at the Cross inviting all who would heed the invitation in. His shed blood causes our sins to be completely forgiven and we are accepted in The Beloved. We are reconciled to Papa , called by His name and loved by the most High. We thus have everything to be grateful about. Before this, there was no hope for us for life beyond the grave, that was certain.
I am so ever thankful that He saved my life. I love to bring Him thanksgiving, praise and honour for all He has done.
Where would we be if not for God who rescued us..?. Sometimes we think it’s our hard work that has made and kept us as children of the Most High God destined for heaven. Sometimes we say, almost with “bragging rights”, that we are going to make heaven. We need to add to that statement that it’s because of what Jesus accomplished on the Cross for us. it’s really not due to any lifestyle of ours, no matter how pious we think we are. We forget that when we try to appear holy on the outside to people, we also, have thoughts that are not pleasing to Jesus. We can deceive the world, but we can’t deceive Jesus. We try to be good, but our good, or our righteousness is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). It’s not 100 percent good. Jesus is 100 percent good. He is sinless, so His blood atones for you and for me.
He is faithful in every way. He laid His glory aside and came to earth to do this. Having reconciled us to Father Gods Heart, and having us receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, He modelled doing life with Father God in a very intimate way, and being empowered by the Holy Spirit. He also made it possible to accomplish stuff with Papa such that principalities and powers would see the multifaceted wisdom of our Father in Heaven.
David In (Ps 126v 3..) declared that ….The Lord has done great things for us.
David was so good at engaging His Heart with Father God and receiving revelation that led Him to a deeper understanding, from which heart -felt expressions to Father God which we read as Psalms came forth.
We enjoy these today, but how much pleasure we would bring to the Fathers Heart if indeed, we expressed the love in our hearts for Him. What stops us from writing poems of love and gratitude to Jesus, that our children’s children will read over and over in years to come and get a sense of the depth to which we received and responded to all that God has given to us.
Mina Bajomo
