The Power of a Thankful Heart at Nighttime (Psalm 100)

Evening Scripture

Psalm 100
A psalm. For giving grateful praise.
Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Evening Reflection

We open locked doors with keys. I need the fob in my pocket to start the car. These days, a website requires more than a password; it sends me a special code. God often feels far away. Elusive. Yet Psalm 100 gives us the key, the fob, the password, and the code. All to enter his presence. Praise and thanks. Gratitude allows us entry to his presence in the heavenly places, symbolized here by courts and gates. The psalmist likely wrote this about worshipping in Solomon’s Temple, complete with gates and courts (inner, outer). Revelation gives us a vision of God’s throne room, surrounded by praising angels (4:8). To reach God, we must pass through those magnificent beings, lifting up his name. There’s no other way.

Psalm 100 gives us reasons to praise. He made us; we didn’t make ourselves. We are the sheep of his pasture. The Lord is good, and his mercy is everlasting. All these eternal things exist beyond our current, temporary situation. God is worthy to be praised simply because of who he is and who he’s made us. Even when we don’t feel like it, he alone is worthy of thanks and praise. As we long to enter his presence, the place of blessing and life, let us lift up his name and experience his love.

Evening Prayer

Heavenly Father,
I come to you with praise and thanksgiving, the key you have given us to enter your presence. I lift up your name above my feelings and circumstances. You made me. I belong to you. You paid for me with your living blood to redeem me. We are the sheep of your pasture. You are good, and your mercy endures forever.
Open my heart to see beyond what is temporary and fix my eyes on your eternal truth. Teach me to walk through your gates with gratitude and stand in your courts with joy. Let my praise join in with the angels in heaven, declaring you are holy.
Father, I draw near to you with worship, even when you feel distant. Draw near to me. I choose to thank you, worship you, and rest in your presence today.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.

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Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.

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