Communauté et discipulat

Todah Today and Everyday (Psalm 100:1~5)

2026.08.23Erik Stolz시편 100:1~5

Let us look at the donut, not at the hole. Psalm 100 cures a grumbling heart: we come before the good, faithful God with joyful thanksgiving, today and every day.

Look at the donut, not at the hole

The word todah is Hebrew. In modern Hebrew it means thank you, but in the Bible it means thanksgiving, praise, or a confession of gratitude. Pastor Lane Hastie's rhyme sums it up: as you go through life, make this your goal, look at the donut, not at the hole. It would be a sad mistake to fix our eyes on the hole, on what we don't have, and miss the tasty gift we do have. Deep down, each of us is either a grumbler or grateful.

Grumbling began in Eden and followed Israel

Adam and Eve had everything in the garden, yet they fixed on the one forbidden tree and believed Satan's lie that God was holding out on them. Satan's aim is to turn our eyes from God's blessings to ourselves and what we lack. The Israelites grumbled for 40 years over water, food, Moses, and Egypt, even though God was sustaining and protecting them. A grumbler is never satisfied, always has an excuse, and believes the world is against them. Such a person misses the donut because they stare at the hole.

Blessing can also breed forgetfulness

Even blessed people are in danger, because constant blessing makes us take it for granted and stop depending on God. Then we say, God, I can handle this, or, God, could you bless me more? Deuteronomy 8:10-14 warns that when we eat and are satisfied, build fine houses, and see our herds and silver grow, our hearts become proud and we forget the Lord. This still happens when we go through the motions on Sunday. It is easy to cling to God in the desert and just as easy to forget him when we have plenty.

Shout for joy and come before his face (1-2절)

Psalm 100 is the cure. Verses 1-2 tell us to shout for joy, with the force of a trumpet blast, as the healed leper came back praising God in a loud voice. Grumblers are joyless, and we cannot worship and grumble in the same breath. The Hebrew word for worship can also mean serve, so worship leads to service and true service is worship. We come with voice, heart, and mind, and with reverence, because panah means before his face. Our God is the God of the waves, the stars, the mountains, and the ants, not a cartoon old man in sandals.

Change your perspective: he made us and shepherds us (3절)

In verse 3, LORD in capital letters is Yahweh, the covenant name by which God guarantees he will keep his promises. To know him means to know him personally, not just to know about him, and this invitation is for everyone. God is our creator: we live and breathe because he keeps the earth where it should be. One meter closer to the sun and we burn, one meter farther and we freeze. He is also the shepherd who was willing to sacrifice his only Son. Many have wandered off like sheep, and Jesus sends us to point them back, because he is the only way into the Lord's pasture.

Enjoy the donut: God is good, loving, and faithful (4-5절)

The donut is the blessing we already have, and the core blessing is that we know God and are his children. First, we give thanks that God is good: he is our creator and shepherd, and through Jesus our savior. He sends sun and rain on the evil and the good (Matthew 5) and gives good gifts to those who ask (Matthew 7). Second, we give thanks for his hesed, his loyal and unfailing love that lasts forever. Third, we give thanks for his faithfulness, because his word can be trusted and he does not change (Deuteronomy 32:4, Isaiah 25:1, Hebrews 13:8). Praise is not for Sundays only. Even on a bad day, a sink full of dishes or a pile of laundry shows we have food and clothes, and so brings us back to gratitude.

Apply to Life

  • Let us look at the donut we already have, not at the hole of what we lack.
  • Let us shout for joy and come before the Lord with glad hearts, not just go through the motions of worship.
  • Let us remember that we are God's creation and his sheep, and thank him for knowing us by name.
  • Let us give thanks every day, not just on Sundays, for God's goodness, his unfailing love, and his faithfulness.
  • Let us look back over each day before we sleep and find the things we can be grateful for, even on a bad day.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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