“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His faithful love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods. His faithful love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords. His faithful love endures forever.” – Psalm 136:1-3

As a parent it is always interesting to see the things you have inadvertently taught your children. There are certain things that your kids learn from you even if you have not intentionally tried to pass those things on. This truth can reveal quite a bit about who you are…you learn things about yourself that you didn’t realize. I have not always been happy with the things I’ve passed on to my children this way, but there is at least one thing that I am incredibly proud of: if you asked any of my kids to say a prayer right now, there is a 90% chance they would begin that prayer with, “God, thank you for…” I have made it a regular practice in my personal life to always begin my prayers with thanksgiving and, even though I have never told them to do this, my children have grown up understanding this is the way to pray.

God’s faithful love endures forever, regardless of our current circumstances. Psalm 136 reminds us of this fact 26 times! When we approach our heavenly father in prayer, we should be able to bear our hearts to him and bring every request before him. But I believe those prayers should always be prefaced with a recognition of his incredible love and faithfulness towards us through every situation in the past, because we will not truly believe he will deliver us in the future until we first recognize how incredibly good he is. So, as we celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow, I encourage you to make giving thanks your daily practice in prayer, not just a once-a-year celebration.

Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your incredible love. Thank You for Your enduring faithfulness even when we fall short. Thank You!

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Shane Cannon