November 2024

HAPPY VETERANS & THANKSGIVING DAY! The practice of thanking God for our salvation releases the Holy Spirit to lift our hearts above fear, guilt, shame, condemnation and insecurity. Praising Him for our victory through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ releases our faith to overcome the darkness. The apostle Paul puts it like this,

" . . . always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins with his blood" (Colossians 1:12-14, NLT).

Thanksgiving & Praise . . .

I'm celebrating my 55th year in prison on November 30th, with thanksgiving and praise for God's mercy, grace and peace.

This month also marks the 20th year of my Monthly Views on the site. I encourage you to go back and read them. I put my heart and soul into this ongoing project.

For the past weeks and for the weeks to come, the Abounding Love Podcast has stressed the importance of always thanking and praising God. Without being sandwiched by these, I would not have walked in victory for all these years. [I'm listening to klove.org as I write now].

The foundation of thanksgiving is found in the Old Testament peace offering (Leviticus 3:1-17), and was to be offered daily (7:12-15). The Life Recovery Bible notes says, "The peace offering [sometimes called the fellowship offering] was brought to God as an expression of thanks for his blessings, healing, or help in difficult times. The Hebrew word [shalom] is a rich term that includes the ideas of physical health, emotional well-being, spiritual wholeness, and material prosperity. The person bringing the offering of thanksgiving was expressing faith and thanks that God had provided what was lacking in his life. It was an act of praise that God had restored him to completeness and harmony with both God and other people" (page 136).

In the New Testament, " . . . since we have been made right in God's sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into a place of underserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God's glory" (Romans 5:1-2, NLT).

"Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name" (Hebrews 13:15, NKJV).

The Sacrifice Of Praise . . .

When you study the Epistle to the Hebrews about the New Covenant, you'll find in chapters 8 through 10 that the Old Covenant sacrifices through Moses are now obsolete (8:13). Like I share in The Christian Toolbox, under "The Finished Works Of Christ": "Unlike the Old Testament High Priests, 'With his [Jesus] own blood -- not the blood of goats and calves -- he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever'" (Hebrews 7:27; 9:12, NLT). "For God's will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time . . . he sat down in the place of honor at God's right hand" (Hebrews 10:10, 12, NLT).

Today as believers, we ". . . continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name" (Hebrews 13:15, NKJV). CONFESS: "To Him [Jesus] who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen" (Revelation 1:5b-6, NKJV).

So for us, all that is left to do is to thank and praise God for who He is and what He has done as our Savior, Lord and Righteousness. THANK HIM for His precious blood by meditating and confessing the Blood of Jesus scriptures daily, as I encouraged you to do in the September Monthly View. PRAISE HIM, saying, "For You [Jesus] were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth" (Revelation 5:9b-10, NKJV).

The Fruit Of My Lips . . .

What you read from this website is the fruit of my lips. What you hear from the podcast are messages from 1977 to 1984, echoing in the present. I was fortunate to be connected early to ministers who focused on boldly speaking the Word of God and the lifting power of praise with my lips like I'm encouraging you to do today. This established my identity in the security of God's Word. The fruit you see today was created by God's grace through faith in Jesus' blood and righteousness.

Thanksgiving and praise is the language of faith. When you realize that you are blessed, chosen, loved, predestined, accepted, redeemed, forgiven, graced, given an inheritance and sealed by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:3-14), you can't help but praise God for supplying ". . . all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19, NKJV). As a result, the Holy Spirit Who sealed you, will overflow from your life to be a blessing to others, so ". . . don't forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased" (Hebrews 13:16, NKJV).

The call to praise is due to our salvation, because the Lord not only healed us spiritually, but heals mentally, emotionally, physically and delivers us from evil today. Because ". . . you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy" (1 Peter 2:9-10, NKJV). So ". . .rejoice because your names are written in heaven" (Luke 10:20, NKJV). CONFESS: "I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. He put a new song in my mouth -- Praise to our God; many will see it and fear, and will trust in the LORD" (Psalm 40:1-3, NKJV). "Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift" (2 Corinthians 9:15, NKJV). Be like the cripple man, who at the Beautiful Gate went his way, ". . . walking and leaping and praising God" (Acts 3:8, NKJV).

Praise Wins The Battle . . .

Sadly, our nation is in a season of political unrest to say the least. Not only in the USA where I live, but many countries are experiencing internal and external wars due to demonic beings working through the hearts of mankind, "For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in his dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12, NLT). So put on the full armor of God with prayer, that is, the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, for shoes the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit (6:13-20).

In 2nd Chronicles, chapter 20, the Scriptures record a battle: ". . . the people of Moab with the people of Ammon, and others with them besides the Ammonites, came to battle against Jehoshaphat [the king]" (20:1, NKJV). He was a good king, who feared his enemies, sought the LORD, proclaimed a fast, recalled past victories against the Canaanites and trusted God to win the battle to come (20:3-12). Then, ". . . the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel" (20:14), who prophesied they wouldn't need to fight, ". . . for the battle is not yours, but God's", so just ". . . stand still and see the salvation of the LORD . . . for the LORD is with you" (20:15-17).

Jehoshaphat and the people bowed and worshipped the LORD; then the Levites ". . . stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with voices loud and high" (20:18-19). Then, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper" (20:20). ". . . he appointed those who should sing to the LORD, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: 'Praise the LORD, for His mercy endures forever" (20:21). As a result, the three enemy armies turned on themselves destroying each other. They won the battle without having to fight and went around picking up the spoils, an "abundance of valuables" and "precious jewels" for three days because there was so much. They renamed the valley "Blessing" to remind themselves of God's goodness (20:22-26). Praise God!

In Everything Give Thanks . . .

In this Abounding Love Podcast episode #198, we'll explore many Scriptures regarding thanksgiving. As Christians, we are to be a thank-filled people. The apostle Paul exhorts, " . . . in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (I Thessalonians 5:18, NKJV). What is the will of God? That we give thanks in everything "in Christ Jesus." This is God's will concerning each of us. When we're "in Christ", we realize and believe all we've received from Christ and this causes us to give thanks for everything, no matter what kind of problem and no matter what the circumstances; we give thanks. Why? Because we know we're walking in the victory of Christ. 

We give thanks in the good and the bad. Fact is, if we're not thanking God in the good things; when the bad things come, we certainly won't be thanking Him then. Again, we praise God whether things are good or bad; in the pleasant things and in the undesirable things. "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful" (Colossians 3:15, NKJV). When the peace of God rules in our hearts, we become thankful. What does "thankful" mean? It literally means to be "full of thanks." In Christ, we have the victory! Jesus overcame the world, the flesh, and the Devil, and in Christ, we overcome as well. 

This empowers us to be able to give thanks in everything. Knowing who we are in Christ is key. Understanding all we've received through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, gives us reason to rejoice with thanks. Paul tells us to be thankful, and tells us how: "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him" (Colossians 3:16-17, NKJV). The key is grace. It's the power of God for us to be thankful. Selah! [Click here for the Abounding Love Podcast episode #198 "In Everything Give Thanks", 10/25/'24].

A Prayer For You . . .

"Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.

I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ's return. May you always be filled with the fruit of righteousness through Jesus Christ -- for this will bring much glory and praise to God, Amen" (Philippians 1:3-11, NLT).

[Also pray Ephesians 1:15-23; 3:14-21; and Colossians 1:9-14].