THANKSGIVING FOR DELIVERANCE FROM DEATH

I will offer to You a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.

Psalm 116:17 (BSB)

116:1–19 See note on Ps. 113:1–9. This is an intensely personal “thank you” psalm to the Lord for saving the psalmist from death (116:3, 8). The occasion and author remain unknown, although the language used by Jonah in his prayer from the fish’s stomach is remarkably similar (Jonah 2:9) While this appears to deal with physical death, the same song could be sung by those who have been saved from spiritual death.

MacArthur, John, NKJV MacArthur Study Bible, 2nd Edition, note on Psalm 116:1-9

116:17 the sacrifice of thanksgiving. Probably not a Mosaic sacrifice, but rather actual praise and thanksgiving rendered from the heart in the spirit of Pss.136 and 138 

MacArthur, John, NKJV MacArthur Study Bible, 2nd Edition, Note on Psalm 116:17

The Psalmist was saved from the brink of death when he cried out to the Lord in desperation to deliver him. God has delivered me (Susan) from the brink of death more than once. I was hospitalized due to chronic kidney stones and receiving IV pain medication. The surgeon who had scheduled me for a lithotripsy was not even scheduled to be at the hospital until the next morning. The doctor describes his being there as the Holy Spirit taking his car to the hospital. Since he found himself at the hospital, he dropped by my room to check on me which later became his custom whenever I was hospitalized. He found me unresponsive even after he tried to rouse me a couple of different times. He hit that big red button on the wall to call a code blue resulting in a flurry of activity. I was intubated and remained on vent for three weeks! It was questionable as to whether I would ever be able to breathe on my own again. The pulmonary (lung) specialist even wanted to do a tracheostomy, but my Nana, Mom, and bonus-mom Janelle protested that I was called to preach/teach and would not want to risk loss of my ability to speak. Praise the Lord for my doctor being moved by the Spirit to check on me and obeying that divine direction to drive to the hospital which was not his intended destination! God used him and the medical intervention he initiated to save my life. I have experienced two other times being placed on ventilator since. Therefore, I offer thanksgiving to the Lord for every breath. I sincerely believe the Lord keeps me alive for His purposes. Therefore, I am determined to fulfill my calling to share the good news of Jesus Christ!

Perhaps you are unaware of a time when the Lord saved you from death. However, He may have done so without your knowledge. Perhaps that two-minute delay leaving for work prevented you from being involved in an accident. Maybe God preserved your life in some other way. We should constantly thank the Lord for the gift of life and use the time He has granted us here to share His love with others.

Father, we thank You for intervening on our behalf to preserve our lives. As long as You give us breath in our bodies, we will praise You and tell of Your wonderful deeds.

Thank God by singing “This is the Air I Breathe” by Michael W. Smith https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEDcKZB7r2A&t=259s