God Is Great. God Is Good. Let Us Thank Him . . .

LAST NIGHT, OUR YOUNGEST SON married his beautiful bride in a God-honoring ceremony, followed by a magical celebration with family and friends. My husband and I had prayed diligently for our son’s future wife, and God brought the two together in an obvious display of His grace. He alone deserves all the credit and glory.

But in the midst of the festivities, it would have been easy to overlook who orchestrated the divine match; who made the sun to shine for the outdoor wedding, when there had been heavy rain and strong winds as we went to bed the night before; and who impacted the many guests with compelling evidence of His sovereign presence and preeminence.

Perhaps you have had a similar experience. God surprised you in a moment of divine intervention, gifted you with the deepest desire of your heart, or enabled you to do what you thought was impossible. Because the Lord answered your prayer, you burst into happy tears, laughed out loud, or shared with anyone who would listen. When things like this happen to us, we often share our amazement and gratitude with others in our excitement, but we might forget to tell the One who answered our prayers just how thankful we are.

Although my illustration is a wedding, a prayer for God’s involvement could range from making a plea to find a lost item to begging God to heal a loved one. I have had answers to both and to many prayers in between; yet I am often guilty, I am ashamed to admit, of neglecting to credit the One who answered. But not today!

Prayers for this couple were numerous and the answers extraordinary. It’s improbable that two people from different continents would ever connect; and the chances of both being in the same place at the same time, when their responsibilities include constant travel, are even lower. But we should never underestimate the power of the prayers of two families who had prayed for their children’s mates since they were born. God used a unique commonality to bring them together: The bride had a sister with special needs who went to be with Jesus a year ago, and the groom has had a heart for people with special needs since he was fifteen, resulting in a worldwide ministry. Everyone close to the couple marvels that God brought together two people with such genuine love and compassion for the special people He created.

There are some occasions when words alone don’t seem adequate to express gratitude, and this was one of those times. But I knew immediately where to turn for assistance in expressing thanks. Years before, when God overwhelmed me with His obvious blessing on our oldest daughter’s wedding, I discovered a verse I would later use to respond to God’s gracious participation and answers to months of prayer. As I walked hand in hand with my husband from our daughter’s wedding venue, I quoted this verse over and over: “I will praise you forever, because You have done it; and in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good” (Psalm 52:9, NKJV). I love this verse! It encourages me to thank the Lord for His efforts on my behalf.

Answered prayers build our faith and reassure us that God loves us. And they also enable us to influence others. When we share specifics about answered prayers, people are inspired to believe that God is willing to answer their prayers too. At a recent women’s event, I told a favorite “answer to prayer” story about God providing a dress for my daughter’s wedding. It’s one I’ve shared many times, including in my first book, Ripple Effects. Afterward, I was amazed that nearly every woman in line shared that she couldn’t wait to have her own prayer story like my “blue dress” story.

Take a moment to review past answers to your prayers, both small and large. Thank God for them now. If prayer is new to you, begin today to talk to the Lord about your life issues. He already knows what they are, and He cares about every detail. One of my favorite aspects of prayer is that thanking my heavenly Father for who He is and what He has done draws me straight to His throne, where I am transformed by His grace. Hebrews 4:16 reminds us that God is always ready to listen and help: “Let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

REFLECTION

Memorize Psalm 52:9 in your favorite translation, or select your own “gratitude” verse. As you know, I often put a special verse to a simple tune to make remembering it easier. Quote or sing your verse to the Lord when He answers your prayer, and then share enthusiastically about God’s love and faithfulness with people in your life.