Love conquers death
Commentary
Object:
My mentor in the ministry used to say, "If you can't preach on Easter, you just can't preach!" The gospel accounts of the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ is the central focus of the Christian faith. This is not just the story of Easter; it is the essence of Christianity. The resurrection and ascension narrative is what sets Christianity apart from all other religions. Only the grave of Jesus was empty. Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, no other religion makes such a claim for their founder. Herein lies our hope.
I heard a story once about a cemetery in Georgia for African Americans. There was one white person buried here. This man's mother had died when he was still a baby. His father hired a black woman named Mandy to take care of his son. This woman was a fine Christian lady who loved the child like her own. Through the years this loving surrogate mother would come into the child's room and wake him with the same words, "Wake up. God's mornin' is come." Even when he would come home from college for brief visits she would still wake him in the same way.
Years later, after he had become a successful statesman, word came that Mandy had died. He set out immediately to attend her funeral. Standing by her grave in this cemetery he indicated to a friend that he wanted to be buried beside this kind, loving woman who behaved in every way like his real mother. "I'd like to think," he said, "that on that Resurrection Day she would say to me again, 'Wakeup, my boy, God's mornin' is come!' "
Acts 10:34-43
We find in this pericope a brief summation of the essential elements of the gospel. Luke records a speech Peter made to Cornelius and his friends after having experienced a vision in which God showed him "What God has made clean, you must not call profane" (Acts 10:15). Through his vision and his visit with Cornelius Peter had come to understand that God intended the gospel to be proclaimed to the Gentiles as well as the Jews. This passage is an important part of Luke's major theme: Salvation through Jesus Christ is intended for all the world.
Peter begins his speech by indicating that he now comprehends this important truth. "I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him." God's love is limitless, his mercy is immeasurable, his grace is unending, and his gift of salvation is offered to all who will serve him as Lord and "does what is right." There is nothing here to support the idea that certain people are chosen by God to be saved. Christ died for all: he is Lord of all (v. 36). Luke repeatedly uses the word "all." "All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name" (v. 43). Certain individuals or groups of people consider themselves God's "elect" and regard those outside their chosen group to be outside God's grace. But Peter insists that only God has the right to be the judge of the "living and the dead" (v. 42).
Peter's brief summation of the gospel includes the reminder that Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit to preach and teach throughout Judea. He "went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil." Jesus' healing ministry was evidence that "God was with him" (v. 38). Paul insists in 2 Corinthians 5:19 that "God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself." For Luke the healing ministry of Jesus could not be divorced from the preaching ministry of Jesus. Nor could either be disengaged from the saving work of Christ. As we have already seen Luke focused on the needs of all people, especially the sick and the poor. Luke recorded here only a brief outline of Peter's actual speech. No doubt he offered numerous examples of Jesus work of healing and preaching.
Peter reminded Cornelius that Jesus had been put to death on the cross of Calvary but God "raised him on the third day." Few truths are more central to the gospel message of Christianity than the death of Jesus. Perhaps the best known scripture verse is John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."
The only thing more central to the Christian faith than the death of Jesus is his resurrection. The fact that God raised him from the dead was confirmed by his appearances to certain chosen witnesses. Jesus' disciples, including you and me, are called to be witnesses of the resurrection. We were not there when Peter and the others met and encountered the resurrected Jesus. But Jesus still comes to us. We should always be willing to testify to what God is doing in our lives. First Peter 3:15b states, "Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence." Our hope comes from our knowledge of the resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:19-26
The ancient city of Corinth was a bustling cosmopolitan metropolis made up of a very diverse population. It was a strategic city for Paul who saw its location and its role in international maritime trade as an opportunity to spread the gospel throughout the world. This made it imperative that the church at Corinth pass on an untarnished gospel free from major moral failures and doctrinal heresies.
Given its Greek culture and its international composition it is perhaps no surprise that some in the church at Corinth had difficulty accepting the concept of bodily resurrection. Today's epistolary text responds to this issue introduced at the beginning of the chapter. This immediate question being addressed is offered in verse twelve. "Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead?" Apparently, some of the Corinthians believed Jesus was raised from the dead but had difficultly believing that this meant all Christians would be raised from the dead.
Paul argues that if there is no resurrection for us there is no resurrection for Jesus. And if there was no resurrection for Jesus our faith is in vain (v. 14). Paul insists that we must believe in the resurrection for Jesus and for ourselves or the Christian faith is useless and "we are of all people most to be pitied" (v. 19).
The resurrection is a reminder that in Jesus Christ God overcame evil. Paul reminds us here that our hope of resurrection also means that good still ultimately overcomes evil and love conquers hate and indifference.
Paul also used an interesting Old Testament concept, that of firstfruits. Moses was to instruct the people of Israel to bring the first harvested to God as an offering (Leviticus 23:10). These gifts to God were an offering of thanksgiving in expectation of the full harvest which was to come. Paul seems to be suggesting that the resurrection of Jesus was the "first harvest," which symbolized the many resurrections to come. The resurrection of God's people is the "full harvest."
John 20:1-18
As with numerous other stories John's version of the crucifixion and resurrection narrative is similar to those of the synoptic gospels but also differs is several respects. The shorter ending of the gospel of Mark includes only the crucifixion of Christ. The longer ending, believed by most biblical scholars to have been penned later, adds brief accounts of Jesus' appearances. Unlike Matthew, Luke, and John and the longer ending of Mark report that Jesus appeared to only one woman, Mary of Magdala.
Matthew, Luke, and John include the same primary elements of the story. Each agrees it was the first day of the week when Mary (the women in Luke and Matthew) came to the tomb and found the stone rolled away. The tomb was empty. Matthew reports that there was an earthquake and a single angel rolled back the stone. This angel told Mary and Mary of Magdala that Jesus had been raised from the dead. Luke tells us that "two men in dazzling clothes" stood beside a group of women and informed them of Jesus' resurrection. John records that Mary of Magdala discovered that the stone had been removed. She went and got Simon Peter and the "other" disciple. They came and entered the empty tomb. After the disciples left two angels appeared to Mary followed by an appearance of Jesus.
John described the scene in such a way as to suggest that the clothes had not been removed from the body. It was more as if the body had melted away leaving the clothes in tact. The "other" disciple, who we assume was John, looks at the scene and "believed."
John believed because of what he had personally seen and experienced. Some people today maintain that faith is primarily a result of rational thought and the testimony of scripture. However, most of us believe what we experience and see with our own eyes. Our experience with God often comes through other people.
Dr. Win Arn was the founder and president of the Institute for American Church Growth. He was also publisher of Church Growth: America magazine. He shared with me once about a study his organization had done with 720 people. Of this group 240 were new Christians who continued to be actively involved in their churches. Another group was made up of 240 new converts who had already "dropped out." The third group of 240 had had the gospel presented to them but had chosen not to respond positively.
Each person was asked to classify the person who had introduced them to Jesus Christ and the church into one of these categories: TEACHER (one who had used an information transmission approach), SALESMAN (one who had used "manipulative monologue" to convince them), or FRIEND (one who had used non-manipulative dialogue).
The results of the study were very revealing. The vast majority of people who perceived the presenter of the gospel as a TEACHER did not respond positively to the invitation. Those who saw the presenter as a SALESMAN tended to respond but those most often became the "dropouts" (only 29% had, in fact, remained active). Those who perceived the presenter of the gospel as a FRIEND had responded positively to the gospel message and had remained committed to their new-found faith and active in their church.
Easter should be a reminder to every Christian that we have a responsibility to tell our friends, relatives, associates, and neighbors about our experience with the resurrected Jesus.
Application
Easter is the greatest witness to God's involvement in the world. It is the central message of the Christian faith. The cross is the most profound symbol of God's love for the world. The empty grave is the greatest symbol of God's power to overcome. The message of Easter is the greatest story ever told.
In 1995, I was living in Biloxi, Mississippi, when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. This terrible storm is often referred to as "an act of God." Many insurance policies refer to "acts of God." These include such things as flood, storms, and other events outside of human control. Of course, these are not actually acts of God; these are acts of nature.
We understand how hurricanes form. They begin as tropical storms over the warm, moist waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans near the equator. As the moisture evaporates it rises until enormous amounts of heated, moist air form in the atmosphere. The winds begin to circle counterclockwise north of the equator or clockwise south of the equator. As long as the hurricane remains over waters of 79 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer, it continues to pull moisture from the surface and grow in size and force. In 1995, circumstances were perfect to form the perfect storm. Hurricane Katrina was an act of nature. Easter was an act of God!
Easter is the definitive reminder that life has ultimate meaning. Paul insisted that our hope for resurrection lies in the resurrection of Jesus. It is in Easter that we gain hope for eternity. It is in Easter we find the evidence that what we see is not what we get. God promises much more than what can be perceived by our own eyes. We celebrate annually the birth of Jesus. His incarnation is an essential element of the Christian faith. The cross has become a universal symbol of Christianity. Good Friday is recognized annually as a vital part of the salvation story. But every Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.
Easter is the decisive act of God to defeat death. I read once about a young man who joined the Cryonics Society. He had a terrible intestinal infection from which doctors indicated he would not likely survive. He made arrangements with this society to have his body frozen when he died. They drained his body of its fluids and replaced them with antifreeze to help preserve the body tissues. He was then packed with dry ice and placed in "Cryonics suspension."
It's not hard to understand why a young man facing premature death would want to have some chance that he could survive death. But Easter gives each of this hope. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Corinthians, "so as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ."
Alternative Application
John 20: 1-18. Mary of Magdala was standing outside the tomb weeping and as she wept she stooped and looked into the tomb. Two angels in white were sitting where the body of Jesus had been placed. They asked Mary, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She responded, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." Mary's grief is unbearable. Her dreams have been destroyed. Her hope has been shattered. The man who had loved her, not her body, was gone forever.
"Woman, why are you weeping?" Because the economy has tanked and I've lost my job. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because my pay check is too small and my bills are too large. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because I have two years to retirement and I've lost half of the pension in the stock market. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because the doctor called me and the test came back positive. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because my secret addiction to prescription drugs is destroying my life.
Preaching the Psalm
by Schuyler Rhodes
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
It's popular to say that people have no manners today. Store clerks are surly. Telephone operators are dismissive. Youngsters chortle and snort their way through church services. The list is virtually endless, and it is usually capped off with widened eyes and a shake of the head as some comment is tossed off about the way things used to be in the good old days. Ah, the good old days.
It's this writers considered opinion that when people mention the so-called good old days, they are displaying a failure of memory.
The so-called good old days are seldom all that good. Our memories are mercifully selective on this score and we retain only those memories that can be sweetened by desire and shaped by delusion. So, any notion that people are more or less polite now than once they were is completely debatable.
Apart from good manners, however, is what one pastor insists on calling an "attitude of gratitude." This attitude is something deliberately adopted. It's not subject to the vagaries of fortune or mood. It can't be altered by bad news of the stock market or yet another set of vacuous remarks by government officials. An attitude of gratitude is a matter of choice.
So often we live our lives as though we are governed by the tides of the moment. If we are treated badly, then our mood is ugly. If we are cheated or dealt a bitter blow then we ourselves reflect this bitterness. However, we need not be victims of circumstances. We have the ability, and perhaps even the responsibility to choose an "attitude of gratitude."
The opening verses of this psalm display such a choice. "O give thanks to the Lord for God is good!" The gratefulness to God that this verse exhibits ought not be subject to the spiral dancing of our fortunes. God is good. Evidence of this is everywhere, no matter what may be going on in our lives. So, why waste our time and our energy on wailing and moaning? Why slide head first into the cesspool of complaining when we can choose to be grateful?
In every day and in every way, let our voices praise God! No matter what's going on for us, God is still good. No matter how rotten things may seem, God still loves us. We can choose to be victims of life's circumstances, or we can choose to have an attitude of gratitude. What's the choice today? What's the choice tomorrow? No matter what day it is, let our voices ring out with this psalm, "O Give thanks to the Lord, for God is good; God's steadfast love endures forever!"
I heard a story once about a cemetery in Georgia for African Americans. There was one white person buried here. This man's mother had died when he was still a baby. His father hired a black woman named Mandy to take care of his son. This woman was a fine Christian lady who loved the child like her own. Through the years this loving surrogate mother would come into the child's room and wake him with the same words, "Wake up. God's mornin' is come." Even when he would come home from college for brief visits she would still wake him in the same way.
Years later, after he had become a successful statesman, word came that Mandy had died. He set out immediately to attend her funeral. Standing by her grave in this cemetery he indicated to a friend that he wanted to be buried beside this kind, loving woman who behaved in every way like his real mother. "I'd like to think," he said, "that on that Resurrection Day she would say to me again, 'Wakeup, my boy, God's mornin' is come!' "
Acts 10:34-43
We find in this pericope a brief summation of the essential elements of the gospel. Luke records a speech Peter made to Cornelius and his friends after having experienced a vision in which God showed him "What God has made clean, you must not call profane" (Acts 10:15). Through his vision and his visit with Cornelius Peter had come to understand that God intended the gospel to be proclaimed to the Gentiles as well as the Jews. This passage is an important part of Luke's major theme: Salvation through Jesus Christ is intended for all the world.
Peter begins his speech by indicating that he now comprehends this important truth. "I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him." God's love is limitless, his mercy is immeasurable, his grace is unending, and his gift of salvation is offered to all who will serve him as Lord and "does what is right." There is nothing here to support the idea that certain people are chosen by God to be saved. Christ died for all: he is Lord of all (v. 36). Luke repeatedly uses the word "all." "All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name" (v. 43). Certain individuals or groups of people consider themselves God's "elect" and regard those outside their chosen group to be outside God's grace. But Peter insists that only God has the right to be the judge of the "living and the dead" (v. 42).
Peter's brief summation of the gospel includes the reminder that Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit to preach and teach throughout Judea. He "went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil." Jesus' healing ministry was evidence that "God was with him" (v. 38). Paul insists in 2 Corinthians 5:19 that "God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself." For Luke the healing ministry of Jesus could not be divorced from the preaching ministry of Jesus. Nor could either be disengaged from the saving work of Christ. As we have already seen Luke focused on the needs of all people, especially the sick and the poor. Luke recorded here only a brief outline of Peter's actual speech. No doubt he offered numerous examples of Jesus work of healing and preaching.
Peter reminded Cornelius that Jesus had been put to death on the cross of Calvary but God "raised him on the third day." Few truths are more central to the gospel message of Christianity than the death of Jesus. Perhaps the best known scripture verse is John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."
The only thing more central to the Christian faith than the death of Jesus is his resurrection. The fact that God raised him from the dead was confirmed by his appearances to certain chosen witnesses. Jesus' disciples, including you and me, are called to be witnesses of the resurrection. We were not there when Peter and the others met and encountered the resurrected Jesus. But Jesus still comes to us. We should always be willing to testify to what God is doing in our lives. First Peter 3:15b states, "Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence." Our hope comes from our knowledge of the resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:19-26
The ancient city of Corinth was a bustling cosmopolitan metropolis made up of a very diverse population. It was a strategic city for Paul who saw its location and its role in international maritime trade as an opportunity to spread the gospel throughout the world. This made it imperative that the church at Corinth pass on an untarnished gospel free from major moral failures and doctrinal heresies.
Given its Greek culture and its international composition it is perhaps no surprise that some in the church at Corinth had difficulty accepting the concept of bodily resurrection. Today's epistolary text responds to this issue introduced at the beginning of the chapter. This immediate question being addressed is offered in verse twelve. "Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead?" Apparently, some of the Corinthians believed Jesus was raised from the dead but had difficultly believing that this meant all Christians would be raised from the dead.
Paul argues that if there is no resurrection for us there is no resurrection for Jesus. And if there was no resurrection for Jesus our faith is in vain (v. 14). Paul insists that we must believe in the resurrection for Jesus and for ourselves or the Christian faith is useless and "we are of all people most to be pitied" (v. 19).
The resurrection is a reminder that in Jesus Christ God overcame evil. Paul reminds us here that our hope of resurrection also means that good still ultimately overcomes evil and love conquers hate and indifference.
Paul also used an interesting Old Testament concept, that of firstfruits. Moses was to instruct the people of Israel to bring the first harvested to God as an offering (Leviticus 23:10). These gifts to God were an offering of thanksgiving in expectation of the full harvest which was to come. Paul seems to be suggesting that the resurrection of Jesus was the "first harvest," which symbolized the many resurrections to come. The resurrection of God's people is the "full harvest."
John 20:1-18
As with numerous other stories John's version of the crucifixion and resurrection narrative is similar to those of the synoptic gospels but also differs is several respects. The shorter ending of the gospel of Mark includes only the crucifixion of Christ. The longer ending, believed by most biblical scholars to have been penned later, adds brief accounts of Jesus' appearances. Unlike Matthew, Luke, and John and the longer ending of Mark report that Jesus appeared to only one woman, Mary of Magdala.
Matthew, Luke, and John include the same primary elements of the story. Each agrees it was the first day of the week when Mary (the women in Luke and Matthew) came to the tomb and found the stone rolled away. The tomb was empty. Matthew reports that there was an earthquake and a single angel rolled back the stone. This angel told Mary and Mary of Magdala that Jesus had been raised from the dead. Luke tells us that "two men in dazzling clothes" stood beside a group of women and informed them of Jesus' resurrection. John records that Mary of Magdala discovered that the stone had been removed. She went and got Simon Peter and the "other" disciple. They came and entered the empty tomb. After the disciples left two angels appeared to Mary followed by an appearance of Jesus.
John described the scene in such a way as to suggest that the clothes had not been removed from the body. It was more as if the body had melted away leaving the clothes in tact. The "other" disciple, who we assume was John, looks at the scene and "believed."
John believed because of what he had personally seen and experienced. Some people today maintain that faith is primarily a result of rational thought and the testimony of scripture. However, most of us believe what we experience and see with our own eyes. Our experience with God often comes through other people.
Dr. Win Arn was the founder and president of the Institute for American Church Growth. He was also publisher of Church Growth: America magazine. He shared with me once about a study his organization had done with 720 people. Of this group 240 were new Christians who continued to be actively involved in their churches. Another group was made up of 240 new converts who had already "dropped out." The third group of 240 had had the gospel presented to them but had chosen not to respond positively.
Each person was asked to classify the person who had introduced them to Jesus Christ and the church into one of these categories: TEACHER (one who had used an information transmission approach), SALESMAN (one who had used "manipulative monologue" to convince them), or FRIEND (one who had used non-manipulative dialogue).
The results of the study were very revealing. The vast majority of people who perceived the presenter of the gospel as a TEACHER did not respond positively to the invitation. Those who saw the presenter as a SALESMAN tended to respond but those most often became the "dropouts" (only 29% had, in fact, remained active). Those who perceived the presenter of the gospel as a FRIEND had responded positively to the gospel message and had remained committed to their new-found faith and active in their church.
Easter should be a reminder to every Christian that we have a responsibility to tell our friends, relatives, associates, and neighbors about our experience with the resurrected Jesus.
Application
Easter is the greatest witness to God's involvement in the world. It is the central message of the Christian faith. The cross is the most profound symbol of God's love for the world. The empty grave is the greatest symbol of God's power to overcome. The message of Easter is the greatest story ever told.
In 1995, I was living in Biloxi, Mississippi, when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. This terrible storm is often referred to as "an act of God." Many insurance policies refer to "acts of God." These include such things as flood, storms, and other events outside of human control. Of course, these are not actually acts of God; these are acts of nature.
We understand how hurricanes form. They begin as tropical storms over the warm, moist waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans near the equator. As the moisture evaporates it rises until enormous amounts of heated, moist air form in the atmosphere. The winds begin to circle counterclockwise north of the equator or clockwise south of the equator. As long as the hurricane remains over waters of 79 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer, it continues to pull moisture from the surface and grow in size and force. In 1995, circumstances were perfect to form the perfect storm. Hurricane Katrina was an act of nature. Easter was an act of God!
Easter is the definitive reminder that life has ultimate meaning. Paul insisted that our hope for resurrection lies in the resurrection of Jesus. It is in Easter that we gain hope for eternity. It is in Easter we find the evidence that what we see is not what we get. God promises much more than what can be perceived by our own eyes. We celebrate annually the birth of Jesus. His incarnation is an essential element of the Christian faith. The cross has become a universal symbol of Christianity. Good Friday is recognized annually as a vital part of the salvation story. But every Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.
Easter is the decisive act of God to defeat death. I read once about a young man who joined the Cryonics Society. He had a terrible intestinal infection from which doctors indicated he would not likely survive. He made arrangements with this society to have his body frozen when he died. They drained his body of its fluids and replaced them with antifreeze to help preserve the body tissues. He was then packed with dry ice and placed in "Cryonics suspension."
It's not hard to understand why a young man facing premature death would want to have some chance that he could survive death. But Easter gives each of this hope. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Corinthians, "so as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ."
Alternative Application
John 20: 1-18. Mary of Magdala was standing outside the tomb weeping and as she wept she stooped and looked into the tomb. Two angels in white were sitting where the body of Jesus had been placed. They asked Mary, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She responded, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." Mary's grief is unbearable. Her dreams have been destroyed. Her hope has been shattered. The man who had loved her, not her body, was gone forever.
"Woman, why are you weeping?" Because the economy has tanked and I've lost my job. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because my pay check is too small and my bills are too large. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because I have two years to retirement and I've lost half of the pension in the stock market. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because the doctor called me and the test came back positive. "Woman, why are you weeping?" Because my secret addiction to prescription drugs is destroying my life.
Preaching the Psalm
by Schuyler Rhodes
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
It's popular to say that people have no manners today. Store clerks are surly. Telephone operators are dismissive. Youngsters chortle and snort their way through church services. The list is virtually endless, and it is usually capped off with widened eyes and a shake of the head as some comment is tossed off about the way things used to be in the good old days. Ah, the good old days.
It's this writers considered opinion that when people mention the so-called good old days, they are displaying a failure of memory.
The so-called good old days are seldom all that good. Our memories are mercifully selective on this score and we retain only those memories that can be sweetened by desire and shaped by delusion. So, any notion that people are more or less polite now than once they were is completely debatable.
Apart from good manners, however, is what one pastor insists on calling an "attitude of gratitude." This attitude is something deliberately adopted. It's not subject to the vagaries of fortune or mood. It can't be altered by bad news of the stock market or yet another set of vacuous remarks by government officials. An attitude of gratitude is a matter of choice.
So often we live our lives as though we are governed by the tides of the moment. If we are treated badly, then our mood is ugly. If we are cheated or dealt a bitter blow then we ourselves reflect this bitterness. However, we need not be victims of circumstances. We have the ability, and perhaps even the responsibility to choose an "attitude of gratitude."
The opening verses of this psalm display such a choice. "O give thanks to the Lord for God is good!" The gratefulness to God that this verse exhibits ought not be subject to the spiral dancing of our fortunes. God is good. Evidence of this is everywhere, no matter what may be going on in our lives. So, why waste our time and our energy on wailing and moaning? Why slide head first into the cesspool of complaining when we can choose to be grateful?
In every day and in every way, let our voices praise God! No matter what's going on for us, God is still good. No matter how rotten things may seem, God still loves us. We can choose to be victims of life's circumstances, or we can choose to have an attitude of gratitude. What's the choice today? What's the choice tomorrow? No matter what day it is, let our voices ring out with this psalm, "O Give thanks to the Lord, for God is good; God's steadfast love endures forever!"
