Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done.
1 Chronicles 16:8 NIV
Give Thanks
This past June, the front-page headline of the New York Post screamed “BLAME CANADA!” The Boston Herald had “Thanks Canada,” and the Dallas Morning News front page said, “U.S. caught in a Canadian haze.” A thick, hazardous haze of wildfire smoke loomed over daily life for millions of people across the U.S. and Canada from over four hundred Canadian wildfires. Americans quickly poked fun as the smoke-clogged air eerily silhouetted skylines in New York, Philadelphia, and Washington.
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While the God of the Bible introduced Himself to the world He created, and His redemption plan through the people of Israel, it was always His plan to reach men and women from every tribe, nation, and tongue. So, it shouldn’t surprise us that even in the Hebrew scriptures we see the nations listed. 1 Chronicles 16:8 is a good example: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done.” In the early days of Israel, every nation had their national god or gods, and we see some of these recorded in the Hebrew Scriptures. They have all faded into the mists of history. The God of Israel, however, is still gaining renown around the globe as the good news of Jesus is proclaimed. The command in our text for today is coming to pass in our lifetime. Never in the history of the world has the Christian faith been growing as quickly as it is today. Take time today to offer praise to the God who created and redeemed you, and as you do, you will join hundreds of millions of other followers of Jesus doing so in their nation and language.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley