On Thanksgiving Day in May

This morning, my heart is overjoyed. Yesterday was the last day of final exams at Duke Divinity School this year! I’m so grateful to God for providing and keeping us throughout this year. I didn’t know what to write, but I knew I wanted to express my thanks to God, so I decided to seek out a Psalm that adequately expressed what I was feeling (thanks Pastor Renee and Dr. Portier-Young). This is taken from Psalm 65 (NRSV; brackets added by me):


1 Praise is due to you,
O God, in Zion;
and to you shall vows be performed,
2 O you who answer prayer!
To you all [men and women] shall come.


At the start of this school year, we had many hopes and expectations. But we needed Your help to sustain us. We prayed many prayers for You to answer and…

5 By awesome deeds you answer[ed] us with deliverance,
O God of our salvation;
you are the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas.
6 By your strength you established the mountains;
you are girded with might.


…You were there. But it wasn’t always easy. Sometimes things felt unbearable…

7 You silence[d] the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
the tumult of the peoples.


…but You kept us. There were times we didn’t know how we would make it financially or academically. There was desperate “roaring of the waves” in our families and “tumult of the peoples” during finals, yet…

9 You visit[ed] the earth and water[ed] it,
you greatly enrich[ed] it;
the river of God is full of water;
you provide[ed] the people with grain,
for so you have prepared it.
10 You water[ed] its furrows abundantly,
settling its ridges,
softening it with showers,
and blessing its growth.


…your provisions and faithfulness exceeded our expectations. You continued to surprise us and meet us, “softening” our hearts and “blessing our growth”. God, for this You deserve all the glory and praise because...

11a You crown[ed] the year with your goodness*




Praise be to God! In addition to Cinco de Mayo, I’m making today another Thanksgiving Day (sorry but there won’t be any cranberry sauce, lol). If you have something to thank God for today, let us “shout and sing together for joy” (Psalm 65:13). Happy Thanksgiving!




God, thank You for Your goodness, faithfulness, and love. I lift my hands, my voice, and my heart to You this day in thanksgiving. Your mercy endureth forever and to all generations! Let the fruit of my lips praise You for all You do on my behalf. Forgive me for times when my praise is muffled by life. You are not good because of what You do, but You are good because You are God. Please help me not to get this confused. You are amazing! In Christ’s name, Amen.



Reflecting,
jag









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* The NRSV translation uses "bounty" here. The translation here is from the NKJV which uses the word "goodness" instead. "Goodness" is a closer translation of the actual root word used in Hebrew (towb, pronounced tōve, meaning good), but the ideas are the same. A bounty is simply an abundance of goodness so the difference doesn't significantly alter the meaning. - Look at that first year already paying off! Lol.


Psalm 65:1-13 (in it's entirety)

1 Praise is due to you,
O God, in Zion;
and to you shall vows be performed,
2 O you who answer prayer!
To you all flesh shall come.
3 When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us,
you forgive our transgressions.
4 Happy are those whom you choose and bring near
to live in your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
your holy temple.

5 By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,
O God of our salvation;
you are the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas.
6 By your strength you established the mountains;
you are girded with might.
7 You silence the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
the tumult of the peoples.
8 Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs;
you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

9 You visit the earth and water it,
you greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
you provide the people with grain,
for so you have prepared it.
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
settling its ridges,
softening it with showers,
and blessing its growth.
11 You crown the year with your bounty;
your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow,
the hills gird themselves with joy,
13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,
the valleys deck themselves with grain,
they shout and sing together for joy.