1 We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;
He chastens and hastens his will to make known;
The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing:
Sing praises to his name; he forgets not his own.
2 Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
Whose kingdom calls all to the love which endures.
So from the beginning the fight we were winning:
You, Lord, were at our side; all glory be yours!
3 We all do extol you, our leader triumphant,
And pray that you still our defender will be.
Let your congregation escape tribulation:
Your name be ever praised! O Lord, make us free!
Breaking Bread (Vol. 39) #204
To give thanks to the Lord may be the first truth the Holy Ghost leads us into after “Abba, Father.” Thanksgiving is the entrance into His Presence. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. One of the first words, when I was exposed to spirit-filled people, was “thank you, Jesus.” This confession and praise to the Lord was continually on my lips after receiving the Holy Ghost. It came forth out of my innermost being.
Paul writes in everything give thanks—in everything. It is an eternal affirmation of the life that our God has given us. Out of our innermost being ought to be a river of thanksgiving flowing out of our mouths to our Lord Jesus and His Lordship in our lives. In Scripture, one form or another of thanksgiving is written 130 times.
As Don Moen wrote, “it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord.” May all our thanks be given to Him first, and may heaven be filled with our thanksgiving today and always. To Him be Glory forever and ever.
Hallelujah!