Thankful for God.

One of our best friends is prone to wonder about things, mentally meandering through great topics like a kitten in Buckingham Palace.  "Suppose," he once mused, "God took a day off?  What would happen?"

Being thankful for God is an oversimplification. Without God there would be nothing: no time, no space, no matter, no life.  Nothing.  Am I thankful for something--Someone--on whom I am wholly dependent for everything?  Is that thankfulness, or is it something else?

For by Him all things were created, 
things in heaven and on earth, 
visible and invisible, 
whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities, 
all things were created by Him and for Him.  
He is before all things 
and in Him
all things hold together.
Colossians 1:16-17 (NIV)

Speaking of rulers and authorities, there was an election last night.

Citizens of the USA turned out in great force to vote for new leaders.  Hope for change swelled in the breast of the nation.  Republicans did well, overall, and people are eager to see if a different approach will increase their personal prosperity and--particularly--improve their health insurance situations.  Bills, referendums, increases in minimum wages, additional education taxes on millionaires, all these prospects hold out the suggestion of great promise for the common man.

I am tired and discouraged.  The country is broken.  A feeble lilt to the right is not going to fix it, especially when there is no willingness on the part of anyone to soldier through some personal setbacks today, in order to arrive at a better place in the long run.

I can get completely morose, thinking about these things, looking at the state of the world, the state of the Union, the state of situations right on my doorstep which still, close as they are, I cannot control or even influence.

But then I remember that my hope is in God.

My hope is not in Washington or Wall Street.  My hope is not in the Army, Navy, Air Force or Marines.  My hope is not in Obamacare, or the "Affordable" Care Act, or Blue Cross Blue Shield (thank goodness!), or healthcare professionals.  My hope is not in education or investing, research or diets or networking.  My hope is not even in logic or reason.

My hope is in the Lord.

God is the only one who will not fail us, the only one with perfect wisdom, knowledge and power.  He is the only one able to watch over us and care for us night and day.

He will not let your foot slip--
He who watches over you will not slumber.
Psalm 121:3 (NIV)

He tells us,

I make known the end from the beginning, 
from ancient times, what is still to come,
I say: My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.
Psalm 46:10 (NIV)

He is the only one who can do this, the only Sovereign God, Creator and Sustainer of the Universe and Lover of my soul.

My hope is in God.

We wait in hope for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.
In Him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in His holy name.
May Your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord,
even as we put our hope in You.
Psalm 33:20-22 (NIV)

I am thankful for God.