Add It All Up
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. (Psalm 100)
A young man was feeling very proud of himself. As a brand-new college graduate he had taken the C.P.A. exams & passed with flying colors. Now he was a full-fledged Certified Public Accountant. His father had been an immigrant to the U.S., & now owned his own little business. Filled with self-importance, the young man began to criticize his father’s way of keeping books. He said, “Dad, you don’t even know how much profit you’ve made. Over here in this drawer are your accounts receivable. Over there are your receipts & you keep all your money in the cash register. You don’t even have any kind of a ledger! How can you possibly have any idea how much profit you’ve actually made?” The father answered, “Son, when I came to this country the only thing I owned was a pair of pants. Now, your brother is a doctor, your sister is an art teacher, & you are a C.P.A. Your mother & I own our home. We have a car, & we own this little business. Now add all that up, subtract the pants, & all the rest is profit.”
One reason that it is wise to celebrate an annual holiday called Thanksgiving is that we sometimes become like that young man. Our mental calculators begin to malfunction and we become incapable of adding things up properly. Thanksgiving forces us to recalculate and add the blessings we enjoy correctly. Psalm 100 is a Psalm of Thanksgiving that teaches us how to keep a proper perspective everyday of the year – not just on Thanksgiving. Our hearts will be filled with gratitude when we add it all up.
Our God is Always Glorious. Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. - Know that the LORD is God. Are you facing something today that’s bringing you down? Take your eyes off of your worries and give a shout for God’s glory. When the psalmist thinks about the greatness of God He wants to shout! You say, “Wait a minute – I was never taught to shout in church. I was always taught to be quiet when you come to church. I was taught that being noisy is a sign of being irreverent in God’s house. We’re supposed to come in sit down, shut up, try to stay awake, and pretend you understand what the preacher is talking about. Church attendance is all about endurance – not joy!” Well, that may in fact be the way is in some places but it’s not what necessarily pleases God. (In case you don’t know it - the goal during worship is not to collectively slip into a coma.) Of all the people on the face of the earth, Christians have something to shout about. Our God is great and glorious and wondrous and majestic and awesome and beautiful and powerful and loving and gracious and far, far more! He is our omnipotent, omniscience, omnipresent, Jehovah God. He is our just, strong, merciful, great, amazing God who never changes – He is above all and beyond all and independent of everything on this earth. And He loves you with an everlasting love! Is that something to shout about or what?
Add It All Up - In a couple of months there will be a series of balls all around Washington D. C. celebrating the election of our new president. When the new president arrives at each ballroom, there will be applause & shouting. There will be balloons dropping from the ceiling. A band will be playing. There will be celebration from one side of the city to the other. And all that’s for a man who was elected as president for only a four year term. How much more should we be willing to give a shout for the Glorious Almighty One who rules forever!
Our God Always Fills Us With Gladness. “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” Why the gladness? Why the joyful songs? Simply because God is greater. He is greater than the obstacles that confront you. He is greater than your disappointments. He is greater than your fears. Aren’t you glad today that God is greater? Once you meet with Almighty God in worship – you will look at your circumstances through the eyes as one who has seen the living God and what you are dealing with will never look the same as you see Him for who he is. Add It All Up – Place all your troubles in one column and then place God’s ability to bring victory in every circumstance in the other column - and be filled with gladness.
God’s People Are To Be Filled With Gratitude. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Here the Psalmist again says, “Do the math.” It is God who made us. He knows everything there is to know about us. It is God who possesses us. We are His people. There is no way anything can snatch us away from Him. It is God who shepherds us. He knows how to carefully watch over us. He promises to protect and provide for His flock. He’s guaranteed He will never abandon us. Add It All Up - and give Him the praise He deserves!
Our God is Always Good. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. We spend an awful lot of time in our life thinking one reoccurring thought: “this is not good” Turn on the news today – “This is not good” The teacher gives you your report card that needs to be signed by your parent. You look at it and think, “This is not good.” You’re sitting at home and your spouse gets angry, “This is not good.” The numbers don’t add up the way you need them to in the check book, “This is not good.” Your boss starts talking about downsizing, “This is not good.” The phone rings in the middle of the night, “This is not good” Here’s what you need to do in each of those situations: Remember the Lord is Good – All the time. Add It All Up - His goodness, His love, His mercy, His strength, His encouragement, His power, His grace is going to be there to see you through. Remember God is Good – when the “not good” comes your way and you will be thankful. His goodness is there for you today and it will be forever.
Add It All Up. We came into this world with nothing but the eternal soul that God gave us. Everything else we enjoy in this life is pure profit. Count your blessings carefully and be thankful.
Live the Victorious Life,
PT
A young man was feeling very proud of himself. As a brand-new college graduate he had taken the C.P.A. exams & passed with flying colors. Now he was a full-fledged Certified Public Accountant. His father had been an immigrant to the U.S., & now owned his own little business. Filled with self-importance, the young man began to criticize his father’s way of keeping books. He said, “Dad, you don’t even know how much profit you’ve made. Over here in this drawer are your accounts receivable. Over there are your receipts & you keep all your money in the cash register. You don’t even have any kind of a ledger! How can you possibly have any idea how much profit you’ve actually made?” The father answered, “Son, when I came to this country the only thing I owned was a pair of pants. Now, your brother is a doctor, your sister is an art teacher, & you are a C.P.A. Your mother & I own our home. We have a car, & we own this little business. Now add all that up, subtract the pants, & all the rest is profit.”
One reason that it is wise to celebrate an annual holiday called Thanksgiving is that we sometimes become like that young man. Our mental calculators begin to malfunction and we become incapable of adding things up properly. Thanksgiving forces us to recalculate and add the blessings we enjoy correctly. Psalm 100 is a Psalm of Thanksgiving that teaches us how to keep a proper perspective everyday of the year – not just on Thanksgiving. Our hearts will be filled with gratitude when we add it all up.
Our God is Always Glorious. Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. - Know that the LORD is God. Are you facing something today that’s bringing you down? Take your eyes off of your worries and give a shout for God’s glory. When the psalmist thinks about the greatness of God He wants to shout! You say, “Wait a minute – I was never taught to shout in church. I was always taught to be quiet when you come to church. I was taught that being noisy is a sign of being irreverent in God’s house. We’re supposed to come in sit down, shut up, try to stay awake, and pretend you understand what the preacher is talking about. Church attendance is all about endurance – not joy!” Well, that may in fact be the way is in some places but it’s not what necessarily pleases God. (In case you don’t know it - the goal during worship is not to collectively slip into a coma.) Of all the people on the face of the earth, Christians have something to shout about. Our God is great and glorious and wondrous and majestic and awesome and beautiful and powerful and loving and gracious and far, far more! He is our omnipotent, omniscience, omnipresent, Jehovah God. He is our just, strong, merciful, great, amazing God who never changes – He is above all and beyond all and independent of everything on this earth. And He loves you with an everlasting love! Is that something to shout about or what?
Add It All Up - In a couple of months there will be a series of balls all around Washington D. C. celebrating the election of our new president. When the new president arrives at each ballroom, there will be applause & shouting. There will be balloons dropping from the ceiling. A band will be playing. There will be celebration from one side of the city to the other. And all that’s for a man who was elected as president for only a four year term. How much more should we be willing to give a shout for the Glorious Almighty One who rules forever!
Our God Always Fills Us With Gladness. “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” Why the gladness? Why the joyful songs? Simply because God is greater. He is greater than the obstacles that confront you. He is greater than your disappointments. He is greater than your fears. Aren’t you glad today that God is greater? Once you meet with Almighty God in worship – you will look at your circumstances through the eyes as one who has seen the living God and what you are dealing with will never look the same as you see Him for who he is. Add It All Up – Place all your troubles in one column and then place God’s ability to bring victory in every circumstance in the other column - and be filled with gladness.
God’s People Are To Be Filled With Gratitude. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Here the Psalmist again says, “Do the math.” It is God who made us. He knows everything there is to know about us. It is God who possesses us. We are His people. There is no way anything can snatch us away from Him. It is God who shepherds us. He knows how to carefully watch over us. He promises to protect and provide for His flock. He’s guaranteed He will never abandon us. Add It All Up - and give Him the praise He deserves!
Our God is Always Good. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. We spend an awful lot of time in our life thinking one reoccurring thought: “this is not good” Turn on the news today – “This is not good” The teacher gives you your report card that needs to be signed by your parent. You look at it and think, “This is not good.” You’re sitting at home and your spouse gets angry, “This is not good.” The numbers don’t add up the way you need them to in the check book, “This is not good.” Your boss starts talking about downsizing, “This is not good.” The phone rings in the middle of the night, “This is not good” Here’s what you need to do in each of those situations: Remember the Lord is Good – All the time. Add It All Up - His goodness, His love, His mercy, His strength, His encouragement, His power, His grace is going to be there to see you through. Remember God is Good – when the “not good” comes your way and you will be thankful. His goodness is there for you today and it will be forever.
Add It All Up. We came into this world with nothing but the eternal soul that God gave us. Everything else we enjoy in this life is pure profit. Count your blessings carefully and be thankful.
Live the Victorious Life,
PT
posted by Larry | 3:26 PM
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