Day 26: Gratitude focus – An author or writer whose works I enjoy reading
Quality or name of God – Forgiving and Good
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“You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you.” (Psalm 86:5, NIV)
The Hebrew word Callach which is used in today’s verse means not only “forgiving” but also “ready to forgive.” I don’t know about you, but I find enormous comfort in that fact! However, it got me to thinking about how I come to Him in my requests for forgiveness.
First and foremost, I often beg. I know the enormity of my wrongdoing, and I somehow feel that I must beg Him to forgive me. But in many ways, my asking in such a way is pointless—not because He is holding a grudge against me or that He won’t forgive, but because He already promised to forgive!
Secondly, I try to “bargain” with the Lord. This vain attempt is nothing more than ugly pride rearing its head—it means I’m still trying to DO something to earn His forgiveness, and I feel that some sort of “give-and-take” with me will be beneficial to God. Once again, however, I am reminded from His own words that it’s not about me! “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5, NIV)
The third method is bribery. Today I sent a thank-you gift to one of my clients. I jokingly told the person who is delivering it that I was sending a “bribe” in order to get more work. (In truth, it is a sincere gift of gratitude!) Yet how often do I truly try to bribe God with something I think will impress Him? And He says to me in return: “I gave up the Only Son I had for you long before you even asked for forgiveness!”
No begging, no bargaining, and no bribery are needed! He is ready to forgive, good, and abounding in love!
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Additional reading (for reading through the Psalms in 30 days):
Psalm 26, 56, 86, 116, 146
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Ideas for demonstrating gratitude to the person of focus today:» – Send an email to thank your recipient for their impact on your life as a writer/author/friend.
»$ – Call your out-of-town recipient or meet a local recipient for a cup of coffee or tea at a nearby location.
$ – Purchase an inexpensive gift for the author or writer that you selected as your gratitude recipient.