You Are Not the Only One

“Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; Sing praises on the harp to our God, Psalm” 147:7 NKJV
Alexander Whyte, a famous Scottish preacher, was known by his people as a man who was very optimistic and positive. He always prayed and devoted the first two or three sentences of his prayer to gratitude and thanksgiving to God.

On one particularly miserable Sunday in his church, about ninety percent of the congregation could not even get to the service because the weather was so bad. Rain, snow, wind, and ice were howling around the church. Dr. Whyte got up to pray, and his people wondered what he could possibly say that would be positive in his prayer that day.

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……..Make a mental list. Think of things for which you’ve never before expressed gratitude.        
Thanksgiving is a great antidote for self-pity, and it’s an effective cure for the blues!

Count your blessings, name them one by one; and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done. Johnson Oatman, Jr.

Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God; For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful. The Lord builds up Jerusalem; He gathers together the outcasts of Israel He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name. Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite. The Lord lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked down to the ground. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; Sing praises on the harp to our God, Who covers the heavens with clouds, Who prepares rain for the earth, Who makes grass to grow on the mountains. He gives to the beast its food, And to the young ravens that cry. He does not delight in the strength of the horse; He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.

The Reforms of Hezekiah “Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke the sacred pillars in pieces, cut down the wooden images, and threw down the ^[a]high places and the altars—from all Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh—until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned to their own cities, every man to his possession. ‘2 Chronicles 29 READ THE ENTIRE CHAPTER

– And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel. 2 For the king and his leaders and all the assembly in Jerusalem had agreed to keep the Passover in the second month. 3 For they could not keep it at [h]the regular time, because a sufficient number of priests had not consecrated themselves, nor had the people gathered together at Jerusalem. 4 And the matter pleased the king and all the assembly. 5 So they [i]resolved to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that they should come to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel at Jerusalem since they had not done it for a long time in the prescribed manner. 2 Chronicles 30 READ ON

Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke the sacred pillars in pieces, cut down the wooden images, and threw down the ^[a]high places and the altars—from all Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh—until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned to their own cities, every man to his possession. 2 Chronicles 31 Read on