Count Your Blessing and Bless (Praise) the Lord from the Soul: Wednesday Devotional

Psalm 103: 1-6 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.

The soul is the spiritual part of our being and is considered immortal. It is believed to be the seat of our intellect, wit, personality, and emotions. It is the place from which we express love and gratitude. The soul responds to the Christian message of salvation from sin through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Bible scholars believe King David wrote it in his old age. The psalmist reminded his soul to praise the Lord and remember his benefits or blessings. The author certainly knew how the Lord had blessed him over time, including the forgiveness of sins, healing from diseases, deliverance from violent people, and the giving of love, kindness, and the tender mercies that the prophet Jeremiah in Lamentations 3:23 informs us are new every morning because of the faithfulness of the Lord God. He was thankful for good food, the renewing of his strength, and for the Lord keeping him safe from oppression, meaning the injustice or brutality of others who wished to harm him or deny him his civil rights as a human being.

A song I loved in childhood written by John Oatman Senior in 1897 urged everyone to count your many blessings, and as you named them one by one, similar to the psalmist, you would comprehend just how good God had been to you. In gratitude for the wonderful blessings bestowed on you, some we almost took for granted, like waking up, we would praise the Lord. So let us start thinking of the ways that the Lord has blessed us across time, and then let us praise him sincerely from the depths of our souls and never forget all that He has done and continues to do for His human flock.

Amen.