Psalm
116:12-19
“What shall I return to the Lord for all his bounty to
me?”
I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the
Lord”
(Psalm
116:12-13)
Sometimes, when we give gifts to people year after
year after year, we begin to run out of ideas.
Sometimes, as we mature, when asked about what we would like for
Christmas or a birthday present, we begin to realize that there are really very
few things we need. Sometimes, in frustration over what to give someone, we
wonder, “What do you get the person who has
everything?”
The Psalmist wonders aloud in verse 12 of today’s text
at what he can give to the Lord as repayment for unnumbered blessings. Gospel singer Andre Crouch wondered the same
thing several decades ago when he composed a song entitled, “My Tribute.” He wrote, “How can I say thanks, for the things you
have done for me? Things so undeserved, yet you give to prove your love for me.
The voices of a million angels could not express my gratitude. All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe it
all to Thee.”
The Psalmist concludes that relationship is the most
significant gift he can share with the Creator God. He will lift the cup of salvation and call on
the Lord. He recognizes that he cannot
outgive God, but he can be faithful to honor the Lord. Crouch simply concludes in the chorus of his
song, “To God be the glory, for the
things He has done.”
Yesterday I spoke of giving God your heart, the gift
of yourself. In doing that, let us
realize that what we are truly offering the One who has made us in the image of
the Divine and whose gift in Bethlehem is indeed our cup of salvation, is the
gift of praise. To God be the glory, for
the things He has done!
Prayer: Creator God, recreating still through the gift
of your Son, Jesus Christ, I cannot outgive you. But I can offer myself as a gift of praise to
you. All that I am or ever hope to be, I
owe it all to Thee. Amen.
Jim Abernathy
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