Forget Not

“Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
  who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Psalm 103:1-5

I read the verses for what they are, a powerful prescription: “Praise!” That’s it. Praise! And as I read the thought occurred to me, “It’s easier to take a pill for something than to press in and praise. Praise is actually exhausting work. It’s like prayer. Just hard work.” If I had a problem–say, discouragement–and I was offered two options: Take a pill and the discouragement would go away, OR praise God and the discouragement would go away. Which would I choose? Sadly, I would often just go for the pill. Why? It’s easier.

I am curled up right now on the couch. It’s cold and I feel a little hungry. My heart feels cold and hungry too. I read the Scriptures, God’s Word, and His prescription is so clear: Praise!

Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Forget not His benefits.

Remember all He has done! Remember WHO He is! Forget not. 

How do we forget not?

Keep praising.

Keep recounting. Keep retelling. Sing them, say them, proclaim them, rejoice in them.

One of our family New Year’s Resolutions is to grow in JOY. We resolve to rejoice. Yesterday, we all got tangled up in mis-steps as we made our way out the door for a long day, and as I fumed a bit in the car, we finally asked the obvious: How do we rejoice right now?

This is the answer. Recount His goodness. Forget not His benefits.

And, believe His Word above what we feel. We believe He does forgive our iniquities, no matter how the enemy might remind us of them again.

We believe He does heal our diseases, no matter how the enemy seems to be winning every battle of infirmity.

We believe He does redeem our lives from the pit, crowning us with steadfast love and mercy, that He does satisfy us and renew our youth, even when we are struggling with fatigue.

We must choose to bless the Lord and forget not all His benefits.

How will you rejoice this week? What benefits will you resolve to not forget? List them! Tell them. Write them. Sing them! Make up a simple praise song and sing it with your kids. Sure, there are songs on the radio, but make your own! Make it your song. What song will your heart sing to the Lord? You are the only one who can sing your song of praise for all that God has done in your life.

Forget not all His benefits. See and experience the transformative power of God in your life today, as you praise His name by faith.

Bless the Lord, O my soul!

{Happy Monday. Bless the Lord! Thank you for reading}