Psalm 116:17-18 – “I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord now in the presence of all His people.”
Isn’t it wonderful when we make a call to a friend who picks up the phone and talks to us, or comes to our rescue when we are in trouble? We ought to have a friend like this, whom we can fully rely and count on.
But even the best of friends can’t always be there when we need them – only God can! He is the only one who can be everywhere, anytime we need Him. He hears our voice and our cry for mercy, He turns His ear towards us, saves and comforts us!
And what do we do in return, when our loving God hears us? We thank and praise Him, we come to Him with gladness, we bless His name and speak unto Him our thankfulness from our sincere heart.
We worship and praise the Lord because we love Him and we want to please Him with our obedience. We don’t need to slaughter animals and offer them as sacrifice to the Lord, as it is written: “You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings. Now that You have made me listen, I finally understand – You don’t require burnt offerings or sin offerings.” (Psalm 40:6). And “To obey is better than sacrifice”. (1 Samuel 15:22).
So, let us remember that what pleases the Lord more than anything we do is our obedience and our worship to Him. This is the best sacrifice we can give; what He delights in, and the reason why He inclines His ears towards us when we call. Amen!
