Praise and Thanksgiving aka Love Languages
Hello All,
According to Gary Chapman's book, The Five Love Languages, there are five ways to express one's love for another. Words of Affirmation, although it is something I appreciate, is not something I am good at. I've studied prayer at length and some of the key factors in prayer are praise and thanksgiving. It doesn't matter who I am attempting to praise, my husband, my children or my God. It's difficult for me. It's something I am working to improve.
So what is my point? I owe God so much praise but I am lousy at praising. Part of it is a lack of verbal skills. I don't think quickly and events get past me too quickly. If you ever receive praise from me, write it down, frame it on the wall, whatever you need to do because it may be a while before you get another one. It doesn't mean you aren't worthy of more praise, just that I may not be able to produce another compliment for some time.
I asked myself why I was having trouble praising God. If anyone deserves praise and thanks, it's Him. It's my job to be a witness to what He has done for me. I thank Him for my food daily. What about all the other blessings He's given me? I wake up every morning in a comfortable warm bed. I have clean water to shower with. I have the task of writing (a counter to my verbal inadequacies), a laptop to write on, a job that pays the bills, a vehicle that gets me where I want to go, a wonderful husband, three beautiful talented children, three (soon to be four) awesome grandchildren. I have salvation and all of creation to be thankful for.
One thought that continues to awe me is that God knew before he ever said, "Let there be light," what treacheries mankind, myself included, would commit. He STILL said it. He still created man, knowing the pain and suffering it would cause. Scripture tells us that he doesn't want any of us to perish. If the rest of mankind got everything right and I was the only one who got it wrong, He would have STILL sent His Son to die in my place.
Is that not worthy of praise and thanksgiving? It is. I'm not giving up on my attempts to improve my verbal skills. I am capable of teaching, preaching, and leading a discussion, but this off the cuff stuff is difficult for me so forgive me if I haven't testified to things God has done for me or His greatness. It's my failing, not His.
My goals are to use my strengths (writing) to give Him the praise He deserves and continue to work on the verbal side of things. I have a friend on Twitter that posts daily gratitudes. I am going to begin posting testimonies about God's goodness on my various social media platforms. Feel free to ask me what God has done for me recently. I challenge you to push me to think and respond.
Today, I am thankful for my salvation. God is good because he didn't have to do that. I didn't deserve his love, mercy or kindness. I am also thankful for a friend who Tweets daily reminding me to be grateful. I'm thankful God gave me the task of writing. I love it and telling his story in written form so much. I love you, my friends, my fellow writers, my fans, my family.
May God bless your day richly.
Love you,
Reggi
According to Gary Chapman's book, The Five Love Languages, there are five ways to express one's love for another. Words of Affirmation, although it is something I appreciate, is not something I am good at. I've studied prayer at length and some of the key factors in prayer are praise and thanksgiving. It doesn't matter who I am attempting to praise, my husband, my children or my God. It's difficult for me. It's something I am working to improve.
So what is my point? I owe God so much praise but I am lousy at praising. Part of it is a lack of verbal skills. I don't think quickly and events get past me too quickly. If you ever receive praise from me, write it down, frame it on the wall, whatever you need to do because it may be a while before you get another one. It doesn't mean you aren't worthy of more praise, just that I may not be able to produce another compliment for some time.
I asked myself why I was having trouble praising God. If anyone deserves praise and thanks, it's Him. It's my job to be a witness to what He has done for me. I thank Him for my food daily. What about all the other blessings He's given me? I wake up every morning in a comfortable warm bed. I have clean water to shower with. I have the task of writing (a counter to my verbal inadequacies), a laptop to write on, a job that pays the bills, a vehicle that gets me where I want to go, a wonderful husband, three beautiful talented children, three (soon to be four) awesome grandchildren. I have salvation and all of creation to be thankful for.
One thought that continues to awe me is that God knew before he ever said, "Let there be light," what treacheries mankind, myself included, would commit. He STILL said it. He still created man, knowing the pain and suffering it would cause. Scripture tells us that he doesn't want any of us to perish. If the rest of mankind got everything right and I was the only one who got it wrong, He would have STILL sent His Son to die in my place.
Is that not worthy of praise and thanksgiving? It is. I'm not giving up on my attempts to improve my verbal skills. I am capable of teaching, preaching, and leading a discussion, but this off the cuff stuff is difficult for me so forgive me if I haven't testified to things God has done for me or His greatness. It's my failing, not His.
My goals are to use my strengths (writing) to give Him the praise He deserves and continue to work on the verbal side of things. I have a friend on Twitter that posts daily gratitudes. I am going to begin posting testimonies about God's goodness on my various social media platforms. Feel free to ask me what God has done for me recently. I challenge you to push me to think and respond.
Today, I am thankful for my salvation. God is good because he didn't have to do that. I didn't deserve his love, mercy or kindness. I am also thankful for a friend who Tweets daily reminding me to be grateful. I'm thankful God gave me the task of writing. I love it and telling his story in written form so much. I love you, my friends, my fellow writers, my fans, my family.
May God bless your day richly.
Love you,
Reggi
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