“The Lord is my strength and my shield;
    in him my heart trusts;
so I am helped, and my heart exults,
    and with my song I give thanks to him.”
Psalm 28:7 NRSVUE

There are many things that I love about the Psalms. They are songs that echo faith in God from centuries ago. They are honest prayers from faithful people. And I love that there is a Psalm for every season of life. 

November is the season of Thanksgiving. This is a month where we are reminded to stop and reflect on the blessings in our lives. And the Psalms are full of Thanksgiving. That is certainly the way that the verse above begins. David put his blessings into words. “The Lord is my strength and my shield;” That is a powerful statement. David knows that God is with him. He knows that God is helping him and protecting him. And he wrote it down so that we can still reflect on it approximately 3000 years later!

And what is his response to these blessings from God? Thanksgiving. His heart “exults” and he sings a song of Thanksgiving. Go back and the verse again. 

I think we would do well to do the same. How does the old song go, “Count your many blessings, name them one by one…” Thanksgiving reframes our mindset. It keeps us grounded in the truth of God’s loving kindness. And, most importantly, it reminds us that God is always on the throne. 

As we make our way through the month of November, I encourage you to go back and spend some time in the Psalms and reflect on all that we have to be thankful for.

In Christ,
Pastor Thomas