Summary of the preaching
Sunday, December 31st 2023 – Aposte Billey.
Psalm 145
1 I will extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts.
5 I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works.
6 Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts, And I will declare Your greatness.
7 They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, And shall sing of Your righteousness.
Suppose we offer things to a first person – and when she receives, she tells us nothing.
Then to a second person, we do the same thing, and that person comes back to thank us.
Which of you would you like to give another gift to? First or second person?
Naturally the second person, because she was grateful.
There’s power in gratitude.
Man in his distraction may not know the power of saying thank you.
Not only is it a blessing to say thank you – indeed, the one who gives thanks is the one who is blessed.
Saying thank you is a way of extending/adding further blessings.
Saying thank you does not come from man, but from God.
In the same way, when someone says thank you – even though we’re not looking for it – we’re happy.
What we feel at that moment, let’s know that it’s the same with God when we thank him for his blessings.
We must praise the Lord for all he has done and all he continues to do.
A selfish, idolatrous, materialistic heart cannot bless the Lord.
Even when he says thank you, his thank you isn’t deep, isn’t sincere.
It is only a true heart before the Lord that can truly praise the Lord.
Human beings often thank God only when they have received what they want, the desires of their heart.
And generally speaking, his desires are linked to material things. For example, having a private jet.
But when he’s thirsty and God provides water, he doesn’t give thanks.
The fact is, he doesn’t consider water as important as airplanes.
But the truth is that water is more important than airplanes, without even being comparable.
But anyone with a materialistic heart can choose between water and a private jet.
Knowing that he’ll never have water again, neither on the plane nor anywhere else if he chooses the plane and vice-versa.
Despite this, this person will choose the private jet instead of water. This is how it is when the heart is greedy for the material.
Beloved, we must learn to be grateful for the little things as well as the big ones.
The Lord is great and worthy of praise.
And when you say God is great-you have to know why-you have to know the reasons in your mind.
What God does for us invisibly is greater than anything we can see visibly. And when we convert, he allows us to see beyond the physical.
Beloved, we have so much to thank the Lord for:
The revelation of his word, the teachings received, because we already know how to pray with the word, his permanent protection, for our spouses (his), children, work, help when the car was broken down….
Our praise, our serious gratitude, must be able to attract God’s attention.
The praise of those in heaven and those on earth is not equal.
The conditions of those in heaven and the conditions of Christians on earth are different.
Because you may be hungry, but when you leave everything aside to bless and praise God, it’s worth a lot.
Ps 145. 2 Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
** Why should we bless the Lord every day?
Imagine having a monthly salary of $20 million.
What happens next?
I’ll believe me and see me powerful. Arrogance is going to be in my heart.
And in my arrogance, I decide to shop to my heart’s content.
Before that, I make a list: water, oranges, bananas, rice, manioc, bread, chicken, hamburger…
I get to the store and can’t find anything – all these products are completely sold out. Will my money do me any good?
No, because the truth is that the one who provides all these things is God.
It is the Lord who allows us to stock up on everything.
The orange tree for oranges, the banana tree for bananas, the wheat tree for flour -the bread….
Blessing, joy… doesn’t come from money.
Besides, if you keep all that money for yourself, you won’t be happy.
But if you start sharing with others, you’ll see the smile on their faces. Then you’ll be happy.
This is how God created us to share with others.
God gives us so that we can thank him. He can give to us directly or through people.
** How do you praise God with all your heart?
We don’t look at our potential – not at what we are, but at what God is.
When you have money, if you consider it yours – you won’t be able to thank the Lord with all your heart.
Even if you can and want to buy a house with your money – know that the materials, the wood, the cement… are provided by God – and if he doesn’t provide everything – it’s not going to be possible.
We need to understand that the material is not important, but everything belongs to the one who created all things. It is God who is important and whom we must glorify every day.
It’s by having this perception that I’ll see that God does many things for me.
I would see that God is always at work for me, his goodness for me…
Psalm 103
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits.
3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases,
4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Beloved, when you bless and give thanks, you must see, know the reason why you are thanking the Lord Jesus.
** If God did not forgive, what would become of us?
How many sins have we committed in the year 2023?
Our God is so good and merciful. So patient with us, despite the hardness of our hearts.
We must give thanks.
** God is the healer. It’s not money, it’s God, who keeps us healthy.
The doctor relies on the written word, on what he has learned to practice. And it can only receive patients without medication.
Where do drugs come from? From the natural environment, either of plant or animal origin…
All the things God created. So if God doesn’t provide all these things, how will we get these medicines?
Not to mention the fact that each organism reacts differently to the absorption of drugs.
He who is wise, he who understands these things must praise and bless God every day.
Saying thank you for everything God gives me every day. Even if I don’t have 20 million, I’m going to eat. Knowing that even if I don’t have a car, someone will drive me or I’ll be able to walk.
Often, those in the villages know how to praise God deeply, but in developed countries, idolatry easily enters people’s hearts and it’s hard to bless God.
God is good. You can go three days without eating, but it’s impossible not to breathe for three days.
God never sold water, sun, air, food…
We buy, because we don’t grow – so we go and find other people who have made it and/or transported it to us. It is God who provides everything.
We need to look deep into things, to know beyond what we see there is a creator behind who is the Eternal God and is to be thanked and glorified.
God’s greatness is visible even to the naked eye. Isaiah saw the glory of God in the midst of war and famine. And it’s right. That’s the way he saw it.
A Christian, a true child of God, must perceive things according to God.
Those who know how to bless God – instead of lamenting even when they’re going through a difficulty – perceive God’s greatness in everything. Indeed, isn’t it written that all things work together for good to those who love God?
With the eyes of my heart, I must know that the Lord is there, he is with me, I bless him and my God will rejoice.
Let’s learn to direct everything towards God.
You have to bless God for your life without comparing yourself to others. Each one is very important. Your value is beyond all things, all materials. Having a grateful heart is very important.
LET US PRAY →
Lord, you are God.
You are Great and Worthy of praise.
You’re my rock.
I bless you for my life,
Your patience with me,
Your constant presence, your strength, your grace.
Thank you for your word, for my spouse, my children, my health…
No one is like you,
You’re wonderful.
I’ll bless your name every day.
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.