Praying Through Psalms of Thanksgiving and Worship

Nick Minerva • Mar 16, 2021

Initially I wanted to make this two separate posts. But the more I looked at it, the more I realized our thanksgiving to God is tied to our worship of God. Nearly all of the Psalms that thank God wind up worshipping God. Psalm 95:2 pretty much nails it on the head.

Psalm 95:2 Let us enter his presence with thanksgiving ; let us shout triumphantly to him in song .

I don’t know about you, but I struggle with this one. I tend to be the “glass is half empty” guy. (It’s not my fault I’m a realist. Wait…now I’m justifying…) Music has never really been my “thing.” Never once have I said in a small group how a certain song was really ministering to me or pointing me to Jesus. I don’t celebrate things well at all. It’s easy for me to fall into being a curmudgeon. Psalms that focus on thanking and worshiping God for his goodness are like a gospel punch in the gut in all the right ways. They remind me that God HAS been so stinking good to me in ways that I will never deserve. Like a nice fire, they warm my cold, Scrooge like, demeanor. They even make me want to sing. (Please don’t tell my extrovert friends.)

Praying Psalms of thanksgiving and worship will keep the dragon of discontentment at bay and the fruit of joy alive in your heart.

This is again why being in the habit of regularly praying through Psalms is so beneficial. It brings things to my attention on a regular basis what I need to grow in. Psalms like 136 that rehearses God’s faithful love throughout the narrative of Scripture remind me of all that took place to accomplish my salvation. They also remind me to rehearse God’s faithful love in my life. A good way to pray in response to that Psalm would be to list his blessings and follow up each one with His faithful love endures forever.

Jesus paid my sin debt and saved my soul.

His faithful love endures forever.

Jesus has counted me faithful, putting me into his ministry.

His faithful love endures forever.

Jesus has blessed me with such an amazing wife in Sarah.

His faithful love endures forever.

He has blessed me with four little children, arrows to be shot into the world for his glory.

His faithful love endures forever.

His Holy Spirit continues to conform me into the image of Christ.

His faithful love endures forever.

He has counted me worthy to suffer for his name.

His faithful love endures forever.

You get the idea. Thanksgiving and worship are to be regular heart postures in the Christian’s life. But it’s so easy to let ourselves get overwhelmed with all the negative that is constantly being pushed down our throats. How do we intentionally combat the steady stream of unhealthy information that comes at us? By praying through Psalms of Thanksgiving and Worship. Keeping these Psalms in front of us keeps the dragon of discontentment at bay and the fruit of joy alive in our hearts. The world doesn’t need more curmudgeons. It does need joy. Let’s be conduits of Christ’s joy.

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A Creed To Remind The Gathered Church Of Its New Life In Christ

By Nick Minerva • 14 Jul, 2023
When I was pastoring I wanted to read a blessing over the church that would remind all of us of our new life in Christ. So I wrote this new life creed and every week I would read it and remind us of what Christ had done for us. We gather together as believers professing our great need We acknowledge that we have fallen short We confess that we are rebels who have gone our own way Apart from Christ, we stand condemned, guilty, and unable to save ourselves But what we are incapable of doing, God did In his infinite love, God made a way of salvation for all who would believe Jesus willingly laid down his life and received the just punishment we deserve So that could walk in new life So yes, we confess our great need We humbly recognize that apart from Christ we are incapable of any good thing But we also proclaim that because of the finished work of the cross we will never be apart from Christ We are forever secure in the love of the Father We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit All because of the sacrifice of the Son, Jesus Christ. We are no longer in bondage to sin We are no longer facing righteous wrath We have been declared holy by our King And nothing on heaven or earth will change that reality This gathering is a testimony to our redeemed state We pursue holy living to be an authentic demonstration of the love we have for Christ We believe that we have been empowered by grace to meet our every need And we gladly anticipate the complete fulfillment of our adaption and the remaking of this world at the coming of our Lord To Christ be glory forever and ever Amen

A Praying Church: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 23 May, 2023
Prayer is one of those topics that always seems to convict me. I have never heard a sermon or read a book on prayer and not been challenged. Even as I am writing this review there is a bit of imposter syndrome because I know I should pray more. In A Praying Church , Paul Miller writes about how to become a people of hope in a discouraging world through prayer. And he does so in a way that was very authentic and accessible. While I was consistently challenged, I was also consistently encouraged. Throughout the book, he takes you on his journey of developing a personal prayer life plus countless stories of ministries that developed communal prayer as a vital component of their life together. One thing that struck home with me throughout these stories was the reality that prayer always grows out of desperation for God. There were several things that I found very helpful in this book. One of them was the connection between a life yielded to the Holy Spirit and a vibrant prayer life. The power to do anything of eternal importance comes from the Holy Spirit and the Spirit moves in response to prayer. Paul shows us a biblical pattern we see throughout the New Testament. Prayer-Spirit-Jesus-power. However, this is not a simple formula to get God to do what you want. Another thing I appreciated about this book is Paul tells us time and again that the Spirit often moves in ways we don’t expect and that almost always includes difficulties. The Spirit enables us to look more like Jesus and that means joining him in the fellowship of his suffering. So this is not a “how to turn God into your personal genie” scheme, like many books on prayer. God often answers in ways we don’t expect and in places we don’t anticipate. This book is also full of practical help. I’ve already mentioned the stories he tells, but Paul also offers several helpful charts, strategies, and ideas to help put into place what he writes about (and lives by.) At the end of each chapter, he has a section called “A Word To Pastors” with a few paragraphs of wisdom to help them become a person of prayer and then lead their congregation to become a church of prayer. This book also made me thankful that I am a part of a church that has sought to grow in corporate prayer over the last few years. This would be a great book for any ministry leader who is burdened with the prayer life of his or her church. But it’s also a great read for any believer seeking to develop their own prayer life. Crossway was kind to send me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. You can get a copy of it at the affiliate link below.

Non-Toxic Masculinity: A Book Review

By Nick Minerva • 28 Apr, 2023
Let me start this review by saying everyone should read this book. If you've grown up in Evangelicalism, you‘ve no doubt heard of purity culture. For the last several years we have seen the harm that has come as a result of this sub-group of Christianity. In Non-Toxic Masculinity, Zachary Wagner does an excellent job unpacking its teaching and the damage that has come as a result. He explains so well the angst I've been feeling with the movement and how often the Church falls short and winds up doing more damage. But unlike many critiques, this one also points a way forward. We know what toxic male sexuality looks like. We see it in the news and unfortunately, in the Church. But what does healthy male sexuality look like? What does it look like for me? What will it look like for my boys? In my heart, I know what I want it to look like, but so often I struggle to find the right words to express it. Non-Toxic Masculinity paints a healthy picture that is (re)humanizing and ultimately looks like Jesus, who, like all of us, had a sexual body. Zach is also very transparent in this book and God used his transparency to encourage, challenge, and convict me. As you read his story you will no doubt find yourself resonating with him on some level. Every man should read this book for themselves first and foremost. But if you have sons, nephews, grandsons, or young boys in your life, reading it is a must. Non-Toxic Masculinity is a breath of fresh air that will prove to be a tremendous resource for generations. Thank you Zach for writing it and sharing your story to serve us.
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