Psalm 50:14-15
14 Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, 15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” NIV
My hope in heaven one day is to have some long conversations with this guy Asaph, who wrote such beautiful and thoughtful psalms. I like his perspective and the simplicity of his faith; no pomp and circumstance, just simply saying, thank you. A little thanks goes a long way.
In Judges 11, a man named Jepthah fulfilled his vow to the Lord – he sacrificed his only daughter to the Lord. Human sacrifice has been around a long, long time, was a pagan ritual, and was strictly forbidden by Moses in the Law. But there is something the ancients held dear – at least for a season – their word; their oaths; their vows. Jepthah vowed to the Lord to sacrifice the first thing that came out of the door of his house to meet him if the Lord gave his army victory over the army of Ammon. Well, it was his only daughter who was the first to come out. Yikes! She did and he did. Weird story, weird ending. Imagine how Jepthah felt when they lit the fire to kill an innocent person and one that he loved…
Psalm 15 asks in verse 1, Lord, who may dwell in Your sanctuary? Who may live on Your holy hill? Out of the list of answers in verses 2-5 it says, “… [He] who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his oath even when it hurts…” Jepthah was such a man. And Asaph said in his psalm, “Sacrifice thank offerings to the Lord…fulfill your vows to the Most High…”
Sometimes it hurts to keep our vows; sometimes it hurts to tell God, thanks. But God is more impressed when we keep our word than when we spout off our intentions. A little thanks to the Lord goes a long way to reveal a heart that is grateful to Him for all He is and all He’s done – even in the worst of times. Asaph said we’re to call upon God in our days of trouble implying that God knows and cares, and will deliver us; and the proper response to His delivery is our honoring Him in heartfelt gratitude.
Thank You God!
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