Know like these elders
Do you understand who God is? Do you spend time thinking about how he is Lord and God and Almighty? Take note of how these elders understood him in history and in their present. While they did it by sight we still must do this by faith. It is not beyond us, though, to connect events in our daily lives to the good acts of God.
Think about our church. We have had two teams go and return from Romania. Middle school camp has gone and returned and the high school trip has likewise been to Daytona for their summer project. Solomon told us in Proverbs 20 that a person’s steps are directed by the Lord. He has been at work guiding our youth, our leaders and our adults to and from places on his earth. The people who have gone out from us and the people whom they went out to are under his guidance. God is and God was with these men and women, boys and girls. He has been working his great power in all of these things.
We may easily rejoice in safe travels for these. Those safe travels have been that other souls might have a safe journey on earth making it home to God’s kingdom. We need to think on these things and more personal things on purpose connecting them back to God.
Thank like these elders
The elders were thanking God for his character and his deeds. God is good and is good all the time. His deeds are worthy of thankfulness. Is it easy for you to be thankful? Probably for some and probably not for others. If it is easy for you to thank God for all he has done do so all the more. If you have a greater tendency toward the pessimistic side think on your life and the life around you. Praise God on purpose for the good things around you.
Praise like these elders
After knowing God and thanking God take the next step into speaking well of him. Praise goes beyond thankfulness by speaking to worthiness. Even an unjust jailer can be thanked for bringing the needed meals, but that does not mean the character of the jailer is worthy. God is worthy and his character is sturdy. Some of us more than others will need to practice praise; practice speaking well of God, of telling back to him his mighty deeds. For the elders this was enough to get them out of their seats and on their faces before the throne before God Almighty.
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