the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and had experienced the love of Cod, our Heavenly Father. Considering Thanksgiving, we note that Psalm 103 is one of the most beautiful of all the 150 given to us in the Word of God. David, who penned these words under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, does not ask for a single thing. The 22 verses seem to indicate that he had had sufficient experience in seeing his petitions answered so that he does not even mention a request of any kind. He just tunes up his harp and gives thanks to the Lord. Is it not refreshing to hear a song of thanksgiving devoid of any “gimmes?" Certainly, while God wants to know our requests, and invites us to offer them, yet it is still an attitude which should em anate from our hearts as we look to the Lord for His guidance. It is recorded in legend that or iginally there were two groups of angels who supposedly were di vided into praise angels and peti tion angels. Everyone of the cher ubs was given a basket and charged with the responsibility of going throughout his designated section of the earth, gathering either praise or petitions, depending on the re spective designation. As the apo- craphyl story has it, all of the angels wanted to be petition angels, for they came back with their baskets full. The praise angels on the other hand always returned empty. What a commentary on the fact that we are so ready to ask and so slow to give thanks! The old Methodist evangelist of many years ago, Billy Bray, used to say, "In my lifetime, the Lord has given me both vinegar and honey. I can readily praise His name that Page 50
He has always given me vinegar in a teaspoon and honey with a ladle." If we would look at our difficulties the same way, we would readily agree that this is the way in which the Lord leads in our lives. It was that well-known Baptist evangelist and "preacher's preach er," Charles Haddon Spurgeon, who used to say that, "Soul music
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