Psalm 126
Your Story
Talk about what you are thankful for this year. Then, tell your family about some of the big things you’ve been thankful for over the years.
My Story and the Bible Story
This week is Thanksgiving. It’s a time when families gather together around a table filled with food, and remember all of the things for which they are thankful. Some years it’s easy to remember the blessings you’ve been given. It’s easy to be thankful. But other years, it seems as if nothing has gone right. Sometimes it seems like you’ve gone from one problem to the next, and it doesn’t seem like there’s a lot for which to be thankful. For kids, that may mean that they don’t like a class at school, they have a hard time understanding something, or they feel left out. Or it could mean deeper and more difficult problems. For adults, it may mean things at work are hard or you are dealing with different health issues, or there are even larger problems with which you are struggling. For whatever reason, some years it is hard to be thankful. When you read Psalm 126, the Israelites dealt with a similar thing.
Read Psalm 126. From The Message: “It seemed like a dream, too good to be true, when God returned Zion’s exiles. We laughed, we sang, we couldn’t believe our good fortune. We were the talk of the nations—‘God was wonderful to them!’ God was wonderful to us; we are one happy people. And now, God, do it again—bring rains to our drought-stricken lives so those who planted their crops in despair will shout hurrahs at the harvest, So those who went off with heavy hearts will come home laughing, with armloads of blessing.”
In the beginning of Psalm 126, the writer talks about their good fortune. God brought them back to their land and everything went well. But now, their crops are dying from lack of rain and they are struggling. That doesn’t sound like much to be thankful for. And yet, they remember a time when God rescued them, when God showered blessings down on them. And so they pray for that time to come again. They are thankful for the past and they look with hope to the future, a future in which God will once again rescue them and shower down blessings.
If it is hard for you to find reasons to be thankful this year, remember Psalm 126. And like the Israelites, think about the ways that God has blessed you in the past. Remember all the things throughout the last few years for which you are thankful. And then pray, asking God to rain down His blessings once again. Ask for help with the things happening in your life and ask God to help you remember.
Action and Discussion
• Ask your family to talk about things they are thankful for.
• Talk about any hard situations happening with your family members right now. As you talk through them, help your children find God’s blessings in the midst of those situations.
• Take time this week to tell people who have been a blessing to you and your family that you are thankful for them.
Prayer
Ask God to help you and your family through whatever is happening in your lives. Ask for help in remembering your blessings.
Jessica Asbell is currently serving as the Minister to Children at First Baptist Church of Roswell, GA. She has worked with children in various capacities at several churches, including Winter Park Baptist in Wilmington, NC, First Baptist of Decatur, GA, and Highland Hills Baptist in Macon, GA. She has a Master of Divinity from McAfee School of Theology and a BBA from Mercer University. In her spare time she loves to read, watch movies, and of course spend time with her sweet kitty, Lucy.
