The Psalms teach us how to bring our true emotions to God in prayer. Because they cover such a vast range of emotional landscapes, the Psalms help to awaken our faith and deepen our pursuit of God.
Psalm 116
1 I love the Lord because he hears my voice
and my prayer for mercy.
2 Because he bends down to listen,
I will pray as long as I have breath!
3 Death wrapped its ropes around me;
the terrors of the grave[a] overtook me.
I saw only trouble and sorrow.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
""Please, Lord, save me!""
5 How kind the Lord is! How good he is!
So merciful, this God of ours!
6 The Lord protects those of childlike faith;
I was facing death, and he saved me.
7 Let my soul be at rest again,
for the Lord has been good to me.
8 He has saved me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.
9 And so I walk in the Lord' presence
as I live here on earth!
10 I believed in you, so I said,
""I am deeply troubled, Lord."";
11 In my anxiety I cried out to you,
""These people are all liars!""
12 What can I offer the Lord
for all he has done for me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and praise the Lord's name for saving me.
14 I will keep my promises to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
15 The Lord cares deeply
when his loved ones die.
16 O Lord, I am your servant;
yes, I am your servant, born into your household;
you have freed me from my chains.
17 I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people
19 in the house of the Lord
in the heart of Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Reflecting again on the mercy God has shown him, the goodness of God.
He:
This is a prayer of thanksgiving, but it is also a testimony of thanksgiving. It is a looking back with gratitude on your personal deliverance and then a promise to proclaim that gratitude to your spiritual community and to a world that needs hope.
All throughout Psalm 116, David looks back at what God has done. He finds hope and gratitude in the truth of what God has already delivered him from. Looking back builds your faith and builds the faith of those around you.
Choosing gratitude means you will live palms up in the midst of your pain, you will be ready for what He has to offer, and you trust in what He is offering because you've seen it offered before and you know He is with you.;
Gratitude in the midst of pain and hardship can be our greatest testimony and can lead right into goodness.
Your testimony may be the scaffolding that someone else needs to hold them up. Your gratitude testimony may be exactly what the world needs to see and hear.