Psalm 127
A song of ascents. Of Solomon.
1 Unless the LORD builds the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.
2 In vain you rise early
    and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
    for he grants sleep to[a] those he loves.
3 Children are a heritage from the LORD,
    offspring a reward from him.
4 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
    are children born in one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man
    whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
    when they contend with their opponents in court.


     Today is the “birthday” of our church. A birthday represents the day on which a life has been presented in this world.
In our scripture, it states, children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. It means that anything and everything is only given when our Lord allows it.
Today, we worship in this house of worship that we must be thankful for. We must give thanks to the simplest things like the ability to gather together and greet each other.
If we are to live our lives as those that give thanks, we must first think positive and good thoughts. With good thoughts come good words. Once you speak good words, you will give joy and happiness to others. When you see that you have given this joy and happiness to others, you will be filled with contentment and gratification and thus the expression of you in your entirety will change. When this happens, you will be a person that truly give thanks.
In order to reach this state of mind and body and Spirit, there are certain things we must do:

1. First, we must know God’s will
          a. God wants us to be joyful always, pray constantly, and give thanks in
              all circumstances
          b. He wants us to be guided by the Holy Spirit and meditate upon His
             word, doing good and shunning evil
          c. He wants us to follow the example of Jesus Christ
              i. Once we accept Jesus as our savior, that is the first step to
                 becoming holy
              ii. Faith in Jesus Christ as our savior is the key to eternal life
          d. We need to be able to discern between God’s will and our own will
          e. Peace is the result of doing God’s will
          f.  Lastly, God wants us to glorify him in all that we do
2.        Second, we need to bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit
         a. Love – seeking to benefit others over oneself
         b. Joy – getting to a point in your life where you are in line with the
             guidance of the Holy Spirit
         c. Peace – the state of contentment reached by being joyful in your heart
             and spirit
         d. Patience – Perseverance through forgiveness
         e. Kindness – Caring for others
         f.  Goodness – State of mind in which love and doing the right thing rules
         g. Faithfulness – Never abandoning your friend and maintaining loyalty
         h. Gentleness – Submitting to God’s will and receiving others into your life
              i. Self-control – Overcoming and restraining your self
3.  Third, we need to focus on Heaven rather than the things of this world
         a. What are the things of this world?
             i. Worldly desires - Romans 1:27-32
            ii. Things that deserve God’s wrath - Colossians 3:5,6
            iii. Things that spurn us from entering the Kingdom of God -
               Galatians 5:19-21
            iv. Things of this world - 1 Corinthians 5:11
         b.  What is Heaven?
             i.  To sit at the right hand of our Lord Jesus Christ and our Father God
                 (Galatians 3:1)
             ii.  Our home (John 14:1-3)
             iii. God’s throne (Revelations 3:21)
             iv.  A person that has become new (Colossians 3:10)
4.  Fourth, we must seek to participate in the divine nature
         a.  We need to become more sanctified
              i.  We have received Jesus Christ into our lives and so we must
                  continue to seek to become more like him
          b. We hope in the Kingdom of Heaven
              i.   We have been chosen by God and given his promise of eternal life
          c.  God has given us life
              i.  God paid the ultimate price for this by sacrificing his one and only
                  son on the cross
5.  Fifth, we must build up our Godly character (2 Peter 1:5-7)
          a. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness;
              and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to
              self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to
              godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.
6.  Sixth, remember the virtue we must uphold as Christians
          a.  Obligation
              i.  Know our boundaries
              ii.  Know our limitations
              iii. Remember our Lord’s commandments
              iv. Acknowledge Jesus Christ’s role as the “life line” of God to his
                  people
              v.  Remember our duty as Christians

     1 deliver the gospel to all the people in this world
        Once you know God’s will, you will know who you are and what your role and responsibility is.When you come to this realization, you will know with certainty that the only thing we need to do is keep our eyes on that prize in Heaven.And as we run toward that goal, we just need to invite as many of our friend as possible to join in the celebration that is awaiting us.