Bless (Affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul; and all that is [deepest] within me, bless His holy name! Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul, and forget not [one of] all His benefits. Psalms 103:1-2 (AMPC)
To remember is to live continually in the consciousness or awareness of. To remember the Lord’s benefits is to always live continually conscious and aware of them.
We have to actively on purpose choose to see the benefits God has bestowed upon us. We ought to aggressively live benefits conscious.
This is because there’s more evil constantly presented to us and which we are reminded of by the world, circumstances, how we feel, and other people.
It takes conscious intentional effort to remind yourself of the good things God has done and given us. One song says count your blessings, don’t think your blessings don’t count.
The world, the people around us, how we feel, the situations we face, are most of the time negative so staying positive remembering the benefits of the Lord is always swimming upstream, going against the current.
No wonder the Psalmist himself is urging his soul that: Bless (Affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul; and all that is [deepest] within me, bless His holy name! Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul, and forget not [one of] all His benefits. Psalms 103:1-2 (AMPC)
Our minds and emotions are always tossed to and flo by anything and everything that comes so we need to anchor them in the unchanging stable reality of what God has already accomplished in Christ.
The Lord’s benefits are collectively the finished work of Christ in His crucifixion, death, resurrection and seating at God’s right hand in heaven.
They include but not limited to:
Who forgives [every one of] all your iniquities.
Who heals [each one of] all your diseases.
Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption.
Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy.
Who satisfies your mouth [your necessity and desire at your personal age and situation] with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle’s [strong, overcoming, soaring]! Psalms 103:3-5 (AMPC)
Remember the Lord’s benefits. Confess them to yourself and others. Preach and teach the Lord’s benefits because the Gospel is the good news of the Lord’s benefits. Pray from the Lord’s benefits as you declare them over yourself and loved ones. Praise and give thanks to the Lord for His benefits in your life, family, and church.