Redemption's Expression of Thanks

Join us as Ian Carrico leads us through Psalm 107 to show us how redemption leads us to the expression of thanks! Psalm107

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As we look at Psalm 107 this morning, I'm going to read the first three verses of this chapter. We're going to look at the whole chapter, but I want to read the first three verses. I'm going to have a word of prayer, and then we're going to dive into a message that I've entitled Redemption's Expression of Thanks. Redemption's Expression of Thanks. The psalmist writing here, inspired, of course, by the Holy Spirit, Psalm 107, verse number one. Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. For his mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, and gathered out of the lands from the east and from the west and from the north and from the south. Would you join me in a word of prayer and ask God to help us, settle us in this time of his word? Father, thank you for this opportunity to worship. Thank you for just all the many ways that we have already seen the expression of your grace and your activity in our life this day. Lord, that's a miracle in itself. Lord, I pray now as we lean into the word, God, and I pray that as you speak through your word, I pray they would not hear in. I pray they would not see in, but I pray they would hear and see Jesus from your word. Holy Spirit, do what I can, and I pray in advance that you would clean up anything I would mess up. Because Lord, you're perfect and you're good. Your word is perfect, and your word is good. So Lord, help us to taste and see your goodness in the word. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen and amen. Well, if I could ask one question this morning. Again, as I said in the first service, and we hear this often, I don't know. I think it's a trap question, all right? But you know, it's like we say there's no wrong answers to the question, you know, and don't be ashamed. There's no dumb questions, there's no wrong answer. I don't know if that's the case with this question I'm about to ask you, but I'm gonna ask this question, and understanding that it's it's kind of a question for fun, okay? So don't get all tore up about it, and don't, you know, don't create uh uh you know uh so much anxiety that you have an ulcer in your in your stomach or anything, but if you could summarize the Bible in one word, what would it be? If you could summarize the Bible in one word, what would it be? You know, now there are some wrong answers to that question. You know, I'm just gonna tell you right now. There are some things you could say that are wrong, but I'm gonna suspect this morning that I'm in a friendly crowd, and there's gonna be a lot of good and right answers. I heard somebody, I think over here, maybe other places, um, whispering um Jesus. And that's always the right answer, amen. And uh that that's the question you get when you ask your kids, what do you learn in Sunday school? And they're like, I don't know Jesus. And you're thinking, well, how did I say that? You know, how do I correct them with that? That's right. Of course, you're always thinking, I think there's a little bit more that your teacher probably taught on. You know, maybe Moe's at the burning bush, but but Jesus is always the right answer. And I would say amen to that. Praise the Lord. Some others may have said grace, some may have said mercy, some may have said spirit, some may have said God. You know, that's a question that I don't even know when. In my weird mind, I was thinking years ago, like, you know, if I'm pressing the corner and I've got to answer that question, how do I, how do I, how would I describe the Bible in one word? For me, it was redemption. It's redemption. As I reflect on Genesis to Revelation and God's word, you it's threaded through every page, every verse, every word, always pointing to Jesus and the redemption that we enjoy as believers in Jesus Christ. This morning, if you have repented of your sins and placed your faith in Jesus Christ, and you're a born-again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, you have experienced redemption. Jesus has purchased you by his blood. You have been transferred from darkness to light. You have gone from death to life. You have experienced redemption. This morning, if you're not a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ and you've never repented of your sin and place your faith in Jesus Christ, I'm gonna say this up front, right out of the gate. The good news of the gospel for you today is this. If you will repent of your sin and place your faith in Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone, by his grace alone, you will be saved. You will be forgiven. You will be transferred from darkness to light. You will be, as the scriptures teach us and tell us, you will be a new creation in Christ. You have a new identity in Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us if we confess with our mouth and believe in our heart, the Lord Jesus Christ, that God has sent him, that he is raised from the dead, whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Because the good news of the gospel is this God loves you, he's got a plan for your life. And his plan A, from the very beginning word of Genesis, his plan A, there's never been a plan B. His plan A is Jesus Christ. And in Jesus Christ, those that will repent and believe will be saved. You see, the scriptures teach us that God sent his son Jesus from heaven to earth. Jesus is born of a virgin, Jesus lived a sinless, perfect life. Jesus went to a cross where he would shed his blood as the ultimate substitute. And Jesus Christ would be taken off that cross dead, and he'd be put in a borrowed tomb. And after three days, he would be resurrected from the grave, defeating your greatest in me, my greatest in me, death, hell, and the grave. And Jesus would walk the face of the earth for 40 days and forty nights. And Jesus would ascend back up into heaven, where right now he is seated at the right hand of the Father. And the good news of the gospel is this. When we see our sinfulness and we see how unrighteous we are, and we understand the Spirit opens up our eyes and our hearts to understand our sinfulness. The Bible says, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. As we look to the law of God and we see how broken and how far away from God we are, and how much we deserve the wrath of God, we see Jesus. And Jesus Christ as the perfect Lamb of God who lived for us, died for us, and was resurrected for us. If we'll repent and believe in Jesus Christ, we will be saved. And this morning, if you're lost, the good news is you can be saved. Let me put it another way, you can be redeemed. This morning in Psalm 107, we see the word redeemed two times. Look at your Bible in verse number two. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Now, for some context here in Psalm 107, we understand that the psalmist is giving us many snapshots of what this redemption actually looks like, okay? And we're going to unpack that in the sermon today, redemption's expression of things. The psalmist here is writing to those that were in and had experienced Babylonian exile. Okay? That is, God's people had been scattered. And now God's people from the north, as verse 3 says, from the north, the south, the east, and the west, they've been brought back together by God's sovereign plan. And in God's sovereign plan, the psalmist here is exhorting the people of God to do what? In verse number one, to give thanks to the Lord for his mercy endures forever. You see, these Babylonian exiles have been in a time of confusion and chaos and captivity and sickness, and they were in danger at sea. And they've experienced God's providential hand in their life and how God had delivered them, how God had delivered them from the bondage of Egypt, and most recently had delivered them from exile in Babylon. And now the people of God looking around at their life and understanding that even though it's been horrific and troubling times, and even though they've got more questions and answers in their life, they're called to look to a sovereign God, put their attention on a sovereign God, and do what? Express thanks for his goodness, to express thanks for his mercy, to express gratitude for who he is, because they have been redeemed from the hand of the enemy. This morning, as we look at redemption, we see in Psalm 107 that redemption prompts us as the people of God to express thanks. Redemption prompts us, just as it did the people of God in chapter 107, it prompts us to express thanks. You see, here's something about our faith. This morning, if you're a believer, you understand that certainly you've been redeemed from the hand of the enemy, right? From death itself. Redemption that we have in Jesus Christ, it means that we've been given a new identity, new nature. We understand who we are and whose we are. We've been made new. We've been given eternal life. And as I said in the first service, it's not our grip on God that holds us fast, it's his grip on us that holds us fast. But we also understand this strange kind of dynamic, right? It's already, but not yet. Because you and I right now live in a broken world. As we sing about in our hymns or songs of faith, we're pilgrims passing through. Some translations of the Bible in the New Testament would call it sojourners. Other ways to translate it, we're temporary residents of this world. So we're believers living in this world. In many ways, we are obviously exiles living in this world because this world is not our home. God has made us new. But we are on a journey, right? We are progressing onward towards Jesus Christ. We've been justified once and for all in Christ. But in sanctification, we're constantly, obviously, working our way in the context of our life. We're not working for our salvation, right? But we're working from what God has done in our life. We're being, we're constantly experiencing the sanctifications, the likeness of the image of the Son of God. We understand we don't work for our salvation, we work from our salvation and what God has done in our life. Because Jesus does it all. And our salvation is final and finished in Him. We as Baptists, we understand eternal security, right? Not because we're Baptists, because we believe the Word of God teaches it. So in often many ways, we see this mirror, right, from Psalm 107, how just as the people of God here were in a time of exile, and they've come back to a place of a place of kind of understanding, and they're pondering and they're observing and they're reflecting on their time of exile in Babylon. And as they're reflecting on this, we see that the psalmist says, Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from the hand of the enemy. But before we see that, we see the imperative to give thanks. This morning I want us to see three reasons why redemption leads to an expression of thanks. Three reasons why redemption leads to an expression of thanks. The first reason I want you to see this morning, if you're taking notes, redemption leads to an expression of thanks because it has a source. Redemption leads to an expression of thanks because it has a source. We are thankful to God certainly in light of what he has done for us. We are thankful to God in light of what he has done for us. I think there are four dynamics that we see under point number one regarding the source. The psalmist, first of all, helps us understand something about the exclamation. It's this exclamation that we're called to. We see the why of our thanksgiving in redemption, but we also see the how of our thanksgiving. Look at verse number one. Oh, give thanks. Everybody say give thanks. That's pretty simple, isn't it? Give thanks. It's the exclamation. It's what we're called to do. It's the expression of our life. It's our devotion of our heart. Again, for what God has done for us. You see, our thanksgiving has a source, which leads us not only to the exclamation, but we see number, uh, the the second part is dynamic is we see the attention. Give thanks to what? So this morning, maybe you're sitting in this place, and because we are in a broken world, even as a believer in Jesus Christ, maybe you're confused by the circumstances of life, and maybe your life is turned upside down, and maybe you're in a place of darkness right now. Maybe you're going through a very difficult time, personally, financially, occupationally, whatever the case may be. You may be saying this morning, give thanks. Why do I give thanks? Right? We see the attention. Give thanks to who? To the Lord. That's very important for us to understand. Now I understand you probably come to church for more this morning, right? I mean, you're thinking, man, I want to get into something, but I think the problem for some of us in church is we have overlooked the elemental realities of our faith at times so much that we miss kind of simple disciplines that we're called to exercise. Give thanks to the Lord. It means to fix your eyes. As Paul said, to set your mind on things above. Right? The church of Thessalonica, 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verse number 16. Rejoice always. Verse 17, pray without ceasing. Verse 18 of 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Notice what Paul does not say the church of Thessalonica, just like we see in Psalm 107, verse number 1, the attention is giving thanks to the Lord. It doesn't say for everything, give thanks, but it says in everything, give thanks. And that's a big difference. Because if you look at your circumstances and you get bogged down in your circumstances, and guess what? There's probably not going to be much thankfulness. I'm just being honest with you, I'm being real. You're not looking at somebody that's got it all together. You're looking at somebody that's been saved by the grace of God, amen, is undergoing sanctification. Like I said, I don't mind, I don't mind bearing out my soul to you. Amen. But I've got some, I, there are times in my life where I feel really, really high, right? Everything's together, man. I'm looking, man, it's living the dream. You know what I mean? Like, man, this is the this is the perfect life. And then there's many times in my life that I'm really, really down. And I can't see beyond what's right here in front of me. And I want, can I tell you something? I know y'all have got it all together. Maybe I'm preaching to myself this morning. You don't have to say, amen. Oh me, you don't have to say anything. But can I tell you something? If you get bogged down right here with your circumstance, it is very probable. I don't want to make a blank statement, but it is very probable that you won't be given thanks, but you'll be grumbling, complaining, and you'll be asking, why is this happening to me? You see, it's important on what has your attention. I mean, I don't have to bring it up, I will just in passing, but if if you give all your attention to social media, the news media, if you give all of your attention to things in this world, friend, I'm gonna tell you what. Your mind and your heart will be right in the goat and that you find that all that message. Give thanks to the Lord, which leads us not only to the attention but the foundation. We see the why. Oh, give thanks to the Lord for what? What's the Bible say? That's right. Give thanks to the Lord for his goodness, for his loving kindness. Maybe your translation is for his love, for his mercy, for his mercy endures forever. You want to know something? When life feels like it is falling apart, when life feels like it is just a constant, just uh like the like the like the floor has opened up underneath you. Here's a firm foundation you can stand on, the firm foundation of who God is. Redemption leads to an expression of thanks because it has a source. Our source as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ is our great God. It is a call to focus our attention on who God is, to worship in the character of who God is, to reflect on it, to marinate our minds and our heart on it, which leads us kind of to the second, the fourth dynamic. I'm sorry, not only the exclamation, the attention, the foundation, but we see the repetition. Because the psalmist here goes on in four other places beyond verse number one to talk about this mercy, this goodness, this loving kindness. Look at verse number eight of Psalm 107. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness. Everybody say goodness for his wonderful works of the children of men. Look at verse 15. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness for his wonderful works of the children of men. Look at verse 21. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness for his wonderful works of the children of men. Look at verse 31. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works of the children of men. Amazingly enough, in the context of the psalmist and his life and his personal testimony as he reflects on the people of God. He is calling the people of God in the midst of the mess to give thanks to the Lord for his goodness over and over and over again. And may that be the resounding call of worship in our heart, the why and the how of our worship. We give thanks for the redemption that we have in Jesus Christ. While the circumstances may change in our life, where the bottom may feel like it's falling out, way while life may feel like it is breaking all around us, we can be confident in God because we have the scriptures that we read about our great God. He is good, his mercy endures forever, he is just, he is merciful, he is from everlasting to everlasting. And in Christ we have the Alpha and the Omega. If you're a believer in Jesus Christ, you can place your faith on the firm foundation of who you are and whose you are, and it's because of our great God. And while the world around us may seem so loud, and we may feel like life is all turned upside down. You can bring your junk to God. That's the best Carl County way I can put it, amen. Bring it to Him. Bring your questions to Him, He can handle it. Don't get lost in all of it. Bring it to Him. Just pour it out, bear your soul to Him, and give thanks. Why? Because His loving kindness endures forever. It speaks of covenantal loyalty. Listen, our relationship with God is not contractual, it's covenantal. And that's important for you and I to understand the eternal reality of who we are and whose we are. If you're saved, if you're saved, you're forever saved. When you're faithless, God is faithful. Again, as I said, it's not your grip on God that holds you, it's God's grip on you that holds you fast. So bring the confusion, bring the tears, bring the positive, bring the good, bring the highs, and bring the lows. Because we got a source. Our source is God. And he's faithful. He will hold you fast, Christian. He will hold you fast. You can't lose your salvation. The second reason redemption leaves an expression of thanks because it has a story. It's only got a not only has the source, that's our great God, the Lord, Yahweh, in Christ. But there's a story. We see this in verse 4 through verse 42. You see, redemption leads an expression of thanks because it has a story. This morning, everybody in here has a unique story of God's activity in your life. There's not another you out there, there's only one of you, and there's a story. And we learn a lot about the story of God's people in verses 4 all the way through verse 42. Kind of the first thing we learn about the story here is we learn that this is a story that reflects man's problem, men and women's problem. It's a story that reflects a great problem. You see, again, these individuals, the people of God that have been in Babylonian exile. The psalmist here is kind of reflecting on these problems. Kind of the first problem we see here is that the people were lost and wandering. You find that in verses four and five. Look at your Bible. Notice what the Bible says. They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way. They found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Psalm 107, verse number 10, the scripture says this: those who sat in darkness in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons, because they rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High. Therefore he brought down their heart with labor, they fell down, and there was none to help. This story of man's problem also speaks of great sickness. Babylonian exile gave them great sickness. Look at verse number 17. The scripture says this fools, because of their transgression and because of their iniquities were afflicted. Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. But not only sickness, but we see that those in Babylonian exile in Psalm 107, they were at danger at sea. Look at verse number 23. Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business in great waters, they see the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep, for he commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the ways of the sea. They mount up the heavens, they go down again to the depths. Their soul melts because of trouble. Everybody say trouble. They reel to and fro and they stagger like a drunken man. They are at their wit's end. I don't know about you, but there's something in this story that I see myself over and over and over again. But see, the story that we see here that leads to an expression of thanks. Aren't you thankful to God that the problems aren't the end? Because here's the reason we should have revival in our hearts and in our souls. Because the problem is not the end, but we see that there's always an answer, which is kind of the second dynamic. It's a story that emphasizes God's goodness. There's man's problem, but then there's God's goodness. Look at the answer to every one of these realities that the people of God were experiencing in the Babylonian exile. First of all, we see that the lost are found. Look at your Bible in verse number six. Look at your Bible. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them. Everybody stay delivered. He delivered them out of their distresses, and then he led them forth by the right way that they may go to the city for a dwelling place. The lost are found. But not only are the lost found, but we see this story that emphasizes God's goodness, we see that the captives are saved. Look at verse number 13. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and he broke their chains in pieces. Not only are the lost found, and not only are the captives saved, but second, but thirdly, we see that the sick are healed. Look at verse 19. The scripture says, Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He sent his word and healed them and delivered them from their destructions. And not only are the lost saved and the captives, not only the lost found the captives saved, and the sick being healed, but we see that the sea is calmed in verse number 28. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet. So he guides them to their desired haven. Which leads us in this story, not only to a story that talks about man's problem, not only a story that emphasizes God's goodness, but we see thirdly, this is a story that leads to personally testifying. Because that's why the psalmist opens up in verse number two and says these words let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Son, I'm telling you what, if I don't get your blood boiling, I don't know what will. My goodness gracious, our great God, in every one of these scenarios, whether they're captives, whether they're lost, whether they're sick, whether the sea, the storm is raging in their life, you notice one commonality of all those, they cried out to the Lord, and what what happened? Did God rescue them? Come on, somebody, talk back to me. I'm telling you what, this is taking service, it's all all hands on deck. Amen. Bring it on. I'm kind of like a one-hit wonder in a lot of churches, anyways. That's it. Hey, what's one commonality in the scriptures? Was God faithful to them? Was God good? Did his mercy find them? Could they trust him? Are you to give thanks to God for his goodness? Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. If there's anybody that's walking the face of this planet that has a story to tell, it's an individual that was lost and has been found. It's somebody that was sin sick and has been healed. It is somebody that even though the stormy waves may crash against them, I'm telling you, you got a story to tell. Our God is faithful, and the storm may rage and the waves may overlap in your life, but our God will never let go of you because he has covenantal mercy, covenantal goodness. He is good always and forever. And just like he watched over the people, his own people here in Babylonian exile in Psalm 107, he will watch over you on July the 12th, 2026. And just like we sing in Amazing Grace, he'll lead you all the way home, believer. It's a story. It's through the brokenness that you tell the story. It's understanding that there's not a story in this place today that goes to waste. Because this story is not about you. This story is about God working in and through you. And those that were once lost and have experienced the redemption of Jesus' blood in their life, being covered now and forever. When you experience the blood of Jesus, I'm telling you what, that ought to get your own blood boiling. Because you're redeemed. You've been redeemed from the hand of the enemy. And I'm telling you, when God gets you, he's got you. Why do we give thanks? Because God is good. Why do we give thanks? Because God is faithful. Why do we give thanks? Because no matter how many times we cry out to him, he hears us. Why do we give thanks? Because no matter how alone you may feel right now, understand this. I said this morning in my devotional time. I read Psalm 121 this morning. From whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord. We understand our God sets high and looks low. He knows exactly where Ian Kerko is right now. He knows where I was yesterday. He knew where I was 10 years ago. Hey, listen, the things I was troubled about a month ago, and I listen, I told you I've been, I get, you know, I get really joyful and happy, and there's times sometimes I get really sad. Like I'm a mess. I don't know how else to say it. I'm a wreck. And I've kind of reached a place in my life, I don't feel like I have anybody any explanation. It's just by the grace of God that I am who I am. And I'm thankful that when I get so forgetful that I can exercise a discipline of thankfulness. And giving thanks has a way of shifting you. Shifting you away from what you were troubled over one month ago, and now you reflect on and you think, God, you're faithful. See, some of you can look back two years ago at something that troubled you, and you are where you are now, you got a story to tell. As a psalmist often do, we don't see this here in this particular psalm, but as a psalmist often do, it's this, it's this, uh, it's this pause. You m you musicians understanding I don't. I see y'all play instruments and I think, boy, I'd be really cool to do that. I mean, I mean, just rock out up here. But I ain't got nothing in me. Say law. The pause. Reflect. On the goodness of God. This morning for the believers, it's a call for us to reflect on his goodness in our life. Because some of you right now are in a stormy sea. As the scripture says, some of you are at your wit's end. Then they cried out to the Lord. And he delivered them. And made those waves calm down. One thing we don't have here is we don't have the time. Just days or week. I mean, doggone it. Doggone it's Greek for hurry up, okay? Like, doggone, what's the problem here? I mean, uh, I wish this would be over with. Hey, listen. It's so easy to say this and almost tremble. But it needs to be said. Because this is not about what I'm comfortable with, what you're comfortable with. It's not about what who N is and who you are. This needs to be said. No matter the timetable, God is good. Because that's who he is. Over and over and over again. The people of God rebelled. God pursued them. God rescued them. The people of God were in despair. God saw them. God rescued. The people of God were in depression and loneliness. God massage their heart and helped them to remember that they're redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. And they're his. And nothing can separate you from the love of God in Jesus Christ. Oh. He works all things together for the good. Those who love him. And are called according to his purpose. Genesis to Revelation. Our God is faithful. When the people of God are like this. God's faithful. Mercy. Loving kindness. Covenant. Listen, stake your life on who God is. Stake your life on his loving kindness. Anchor it this morning through the difficulty. Because our God sets high and looks low. And whatever your story is, trust him. Leads us to the last reason, and I'm done. Number three. Not only the source and the story, but we see the satisfaction. Redemption leads to an expression of thanks because it has satisfaction. I'd say great satisfaction. Look at verse 43. This is amazing. So the psalmist ends this way. Whoever is wise will observe these things. Isn't that something? Whoever is wise, you'll observe these things, and they, you, me, will understand the loving kindness of the Lord. It's just satisfaction understanding you and I are called to a place to understand there's this invitation involved, right? It's whoever. I mean, this is more than the invitation, it's for you and for me to enjoy the goodness and loving kindness of God. As others have said, preachers have said, you can have as much of God as you want. But it's coming to a place in your life that you feast upon his goodness. Whoever's wise, I mean that's a wisdom of God. Jesus is the wisdom of God. Whoever's wise will observe these things. Reflect on these realities. We'll pause and observe. Because then you will understand the loving kindness of the Lord. We see the why of Thanksgiving, we see the how of Thanksgiving. Certainly there are so many practical dynamics of Thanksgiving. Writing it out, living it out. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. We're called to speak it out. But the invitation this morning is for you and I to enjoy great satisfaction in God. Whoever is wise, you'll observe these things. Means that you're going to heed. Ponder them. Observe means meditate on these things. It's looking back at a year, two, five, ten years of your life. The context of God's goodness is faithfulness. Not yours. Don't dwell on your faithfulness. That's not about you. This is about how God's been faithful. Rest in that. Only thing we'll leave ourselves with is beating ourselves up. Meditate. And then you'll understand the loving kindness of the Lord. This morning, as a praise team comes and finds our way, the time of response invitation. First of all, to the believers, those that call themselves Christian. We see the source, the story, and the satisfaction. Redemption leads to an expression of thanks because it has a source. The Lord, Yahweh, his Son Jesus Christ. The redemption that we have in Christ. Redemption leads to an expression of thanks because it has a story. It's understanding. Well, I've been in the darkest of dark, and God rescued me. God was faithful to me. God sought me out. I was faithless. I had sin. But I confessed, repented. If we confess our sin, He's faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

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Wow.

SPEAKER_00 39:08

It's a story. And this morning, the response can be right where you are. Many of you, that's going to be the reality. But I would say this response is more than this moment. The response is to leave here and exercise thankfulness in your life. For his mercy endures forever. To live bold and courageous in his plan that he has for your life. But in this moment, the response really is a prayer of thanksgiving and gratitude. And would you agree with me that it's believers? We should never outgrow that response. And I confess, sometimes I'm always looking to give me more flash here. I need something with great bang, you know? Like I want this big moving thought. No, the thought this morning is going to be this: give thanks to the Lord for his mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. Because he's redeemed from the hand of the enemy. He's brought them from the lands from the north, the south, east, and the west. And all the story of life, it's a call for us to give thanks. Believers, maybe here this morning, you need somebody to pray with. Braden and I will be down front here. Because for you this morning, you're saying, and for me, it is a place that I need to say thank you, but this is a place in my own life right now. If I were to just confess to you that this is a place that I feel at my wit's end. And I want somebody to pray with me. That through this season I would express thanks. And then if you're here this morning and you're lost, most importantly, you don't have a relationship with Jesus Christ. The good news of the gospel is this God sent forth his son, born of a virgin, to live a sinless, perfect life, bow on a cross, shedding his blood for you, to go to a borrowed tomb, after three days be resurrected out of that grave. He ascended back up into heaven, where you see at the right hand of the Father. And the Bible says, Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. The attitude of your heart is faith alone, Jesus alone, grace alone. Surrendering your life to Him, put both feet on the Jesus' path. If you're lost, you can be saved this morning. That's your story. Respond to God's conviction in your life. We'll be glad to help you down front here as well. Let's pray. Father, thank you for your grace, your goodness. Lord Jesus. I pray this morning as we lean in this invitation. That we would meditate on your faithfulness. I pray the lost will be saved. I pray the saved will be edified and sanctified. Lord, we need your help. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.