By Steven J. Hogan
~ A Saturday Morning Post #349 ~
There are four things God wants you to do in 2026, 2027, and forever – thinking, thanking, praising, and proclaiming – and they are essential for your relationship with God and your spiritual growth. Doing these things brings God glory, gives you joy, and are keys to spiritual success. And they are sequential, for thinking leads to thanking which leads to praising which leads to proclaiming. Many Psalms talk about these godly instructions. So let’s look at them:
Psalm 9. Vs. 1a says, “I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart” (thanking). Vs. 2 tells us, “I will give praise to Your name, O Most High” (praising). Vs. 1b informs us, “I will tell of all Your wonders”, and similarly, vs. 11 says, “Declare among the people His deeds” (proclaiming). The rest of the Psalm tells us what David is thinking, that God watches over His people but judges the nations, which is the reason he is thanking and praising God, and proclaiming His deeds.
Psalm 105. Vs. 1a says, “O give thanks to the Lord” (thanking). Vs. 2a tells us, “Sing praises to Him” (praising). Vss. 1b and 2b instruct us, “Make known His deeds among the peoples”, and “Speak of all His wonders” (proclaiming). Vs. 5 tells us to “remember His wonders” (thinking), and vss. 6-45 go on to share these wonders, that God raised up the Jews and led them into the promised land, which explains what the writer is thinking, and why he is thanking and praising God, and proclaiming His deeds. Ps. 136:10-24 gives a similar history of the Jews, and repeatedly states that what God is doing shows His love for them, and they are to thank Him for this.
Psalm 106. Vs. 1b says, “Give thanks to the Lord.” (thanking). Vs. 1a tells us, “Praise the Lord” (praising). Vs. 2 states that we are to “speak of the mighty deeds of the Lord” (proclaiming). This Psalm focuses on Israel’s sins and yet, God still loved them, led them, and did mighty deeds for them. So we are to think about God’s deeds for it leads us to thanking, praising, and proclaiming.
Psalm 111. Vs. 1b tells us to “give thanks to the Lord” with all our heart (thanking). Vs. 1a commands us to “praise the Lord” (praising). Vs. 2 says that “the works of the Lord are studied by all who delight in them”, and vs. 4 tells us,“He has made His wonders to be remembered” (thinking). Vss. 5-9 summarize God’s wonderful work and character, which is what the Jews are to think about and which results in them thanking and praising God. The Psalm rightly concludes by saying, “His praise endures forever.” Ps. 111:10
Psalm 145. Vs. 5 tells us to “meditate” on God’s “wonderful works” (thinking). Vs. 10a says we are to give “thanks” to the Lord (thanking). Vss. 1-2 instructs us to “praise” the Lord (praising). Vs. 4 tells us to “declare” God’s mighty acts (proclaiming). Ps. 145, like Ps. 106, has much to say about God’s work and character. And vss. 14-20 give many examples of how God’s work displays His character (vss. 8-9), and we are to thank and praise God for this. Vss. 11-13 gives the big picture for it speaks of God’s eternal kingdom – and we will be with Christ in His kingdom, and forever thinking of Him, thanking Him, praising Him, and proclaiming Him as Lord. Phil. 2:9-11
Let’s now look at the meaning of thinking, thanking, praising, and proclaiming: First, think about the works of God. The word meditate means to think, and we know the importance of daily meditating on God’s word. (Ps. 1:2). So too you are to daily think about what’s happening so as to learn how God is working. I suggest taking time every night to think about your day, to reflect on His work to see what He’s doing in your life and in the lives of others. “I meditate on all Your doings.” (Ps. 143:5). And look back over the past week, month, year, or even your entire life, and think about key events and people during those times. I cannot stress enough the value of taking the time to think about what God is doing. Then you will thank and praise Him and say, “You are great and do wondrous deeds.” Ps. 86:10
Second, thank God for His works. Thinking about God’s work is the basis for thanking Him. Thinking about His work results in recognizing His involvement and activity in your life. Doing this enlarges God in your mind, making Him and His work more visible to you. This warms your heart for God, fills you with love for Him, and motivates you to be thankful, to be grateful to Him.
The greatest work of God is your salvation, that He has forgiven you, given you eternal life, and made you His child – and it pleases God when you thank Him for this, which should happen every day of your life and when you have communion (1 Cor. 11:24-25). It’s also good to thank God for what He does in general, like loving you. And thank Him for specific things, for food, friends, children, church, trials, weather, work, money, etc. “In everything give thanks, for this is God’s will for you” (1 Th. 5:18). Thinking about God’s work brings His character into view, His love, holiness, kindness, power, patience, wisdom, sovereignty, etc. and it’s a blessing to thank Him for this as well. “I will… magnify Him with thanksgiving.” Ps. 69:30
Third, praise God for His works. The phrase “praise” and other forms of“praise” appear 214 times in the book of Psalms (KJV), and this is a strong statement from God to you that this should be a major part of your life. Praise is defined as boast, celebrate, shine, glory, or exalt. It’s not lifting up and thinking about self, sin, or evil things, but lifting up God and godly thoughts, and glorifying Him, celebrating Him, and boasting about Him. “O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.” Ps. 34:3
Praise starts in your heart, in your innermost being, and is heard in your words and seen in your actions. “You are the light of the world.” (Matt. 5:14).“Light shall shine out of darkness” (2 Cor 4:6). Praising God is essential for your relationship with Him; being able to live for Him; being holy; being filled with love, joy, and hope; loving others; spiritual success; and much, much more.
All people are to praise God, but unbelievers praise themselves, things, and others – singers, athletes, actors, actresses, politicians, celebrities, etc., and they are idolaters. Christians are only to praise God, for He is their Creator, Savior, and Lord, and He is loving, holy, and powerful. And the more you praise God, the more you see Him for who He is, the more united you are with Him, the more intimacy you have with Him, and the more you love Him. So praise the Lord at all times, and all day long, and in these end-times. And praise the Lord when life is good, when it’s sunny, or when life is hard, when it’s stormy. “Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever.” Psalm 145:1-2
Fourth, proclaim the works of God. It’s not enough to just think about God’s work and thank and praise Him for it – you are to tell others about it. God wants you to be a good witness, to lovingly and clearly testify of His glorious work, from being saved, to how He is working in your life and in the lives of others, to what He is doing in this world, and to His Son’s return to establish His kingdom on earth.
“Even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation” (Ps. 71:18). “One generation shall praise Your works to another, and shall declare Your mighty acts… men shall speak of the power of Your awesome acts, and I will tell of Your greatness” (Ps. 145:4, 6). “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses” (Acts 1:8). “They reported all that God had done for them.” Acts 15:4
You must know what’s happening in these end-times, but you must also know what you are to do. And thinking, thanking, praising, and proclaiming is what God wants you to do, and is at the heart, is essential for everything else He wants you to do. Focus on these four things, and I guarantee you that you will have not just a good year, but a great year, and a great forever. I say forever because thinking, thanking, praising, and proclaiming is what we will be doing for all eternity. “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” Rev. 5:13
P.S. So in general, what will be taking place this year” Here is a post that will tell you: “God’s Plans for 2024 and Beyond.” Here is another post about what God wants you to do in the end-times: “How Then Should We Live in the End-Times?”