PRAISE

PSALM 145

[1] I will extol Thee, my God, O King; and I will bless Thy name for ever and ever.

[2] Every day will I bless Thee; and I will praise Thy name for ever and ever.

[3] Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.

[4] One generation shall praise Thy works to another, and shall declare Thy mighty acts.

[5] I will speak of the glorious honour of Thy majesty, and of Thy wondrous works.

[6] And men shall speak of the might of Thy terrible acts: and I will declare Thy greatness.

[7] They shall abundantly utter the memory of Thy great goodness, and shall sing of Thy righteousness.

[8] The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

[9] The LORD is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.

[10] All Thy works shall praise Thee, O LORD; and Thy saints shall bless Thee.

[11] They shall speak of the glory of Thy kingdom, and talk of Thy power;

[12] To make known to the sons of men His mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of His kingdom.

[13] Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.

[14] The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.

[15] The eyes of all wait upon Thee; and Thou givest them their meat in due season.

[16] Thou openest Thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

[17] The LORD is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works.

[18] The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon Him in truth.

[19] He will fulfil the desire of them that fear Him: He also will hear their cry, and will save them.

[20] The LORD preserveth all them that love Him: but all the wicked will He destroy.

[21] My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD: and let all flesh bless His holy name for ever and ever.

Praise Him, praise Him, praise Him, Saints! Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving for He has done wonderful things for His people. "Praise ye the LORD: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely." (Psalm 141: 1)

As we go back to ancient times and ponder on the lives of the brethren who followed God fully in obedience, He provided for every need and every situation that they were forced to endure. They never lacked in any area of their lives and God provided the basic needs such as food and water to sustain them. After enduring hardships, the people would build altars unto the Lord to offer burnt offerings. This pleased God and He blessed His children abundantly. We no longer offer up burnt offerings but rather we offer up our whole being to the Father. Our allegiance and obedience to God is to walk in holiness, to love everybody and to bless His holy name. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." (Romans 12: 1-2)

We render our lives, hearts, mind, time, money, energy, love and the fruit of our lips, the sacrifice of praise. Yes, it is a sacrifice of praise when rough times come, when all forsake you, when your faith is being challenged, when it seems like nobody understands or cares, when you’re tired and feel all alone, when there seems to be no way out of a situation, when in sickness where your strength is weak, when you feel like giving up, when you’re discouraged and don’t feel like praising. This is the time to rise up out of the ashes and put on the garment of praise. "The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He might be glorified." (Isaiah 61: 1-3)

Praising God makes you feel so much better. Praises tend to make you forget all about your problems for a while and it shifts the focus onto almighty God. It releases your cares, worries and fears. It puts you in an atmosphere of safety, love and comfort. Gratefulness takes over the heart and soul and unleashes a praise of thankfulness. You become thankful for every little thing as well as all of your past problems where God rescued you from fear and anxiety. The impossible seems possible now, the soul is recharged and the spirit is strengthened. You feel as if you can take on an army, swim the deepest ocean, climb the highest mountain and fight your strongest enemies. God’s glory steps in to help His precious little ones. He blesses our obedience as we put forth the effort to encourage ourselves. He lifts up our heads and gives us power to fight on and win the battles that seek to destroy us.

A joyful heart is the easiest time to offer up praise. But the old enemy, Satan himself, is always on the prowl to stop us. Giving God glory is what the Devil hates and he will try to distract us with everything he has to offer. He knows that God loves praise and the benefits and rewards that we receive will hinder him as he tries to battle us.

A glad and grateful heart is a happy, joyful heart. The mere mention of Jesus’ name puts a smile on our face and a praise in our mouth. We are to extol, magnify and bless the name of the Lord forever and ever because He is great and greatly to be praised. The high praises of getting lost in the spirit and putting yourself in a place of total worship is where God dwells for He inhabits the praises of His people. He wants us to live there declaring His mighty acts, speaking of His glorious honor, majesty and wondrous works. He wants His saints to sing of His righteousness, His tender mercies and His power. He wants us to make known His mighty acts and the glorious majesty of His kingdom. He wants us to talk, talk, talk about Jesus. He simply wants His dear children to bless Him. Bless Him for being a part of His kingdom, bless Him for hearing and answering our prayers, bless Him for caring and providing for us, bless Him for every heart beat and breath we take, bless Him for not allowing harm to come upon us, bless Him in our trials and tribulations that He takes us through. He wants us to bless Him in it all. The good and the bad. "Praise ye the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul. While I live will I praise the LORD: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being. (Psalm 146: 1-2) Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of His name: make His praise glorious." (Psalm 66: 1-2)

Worshipping God is a whole new level of praise. It is a mindset of you and God alone with no distractions. It is here that the meditation and intimacy with God is revealing how your heart truly feels about Him. You adore Him so you just want to be in His presence to offer what praises you have with all of your being. The feeling is indescribable and the peace is very prevalent. The quietness and tranquility comes from a soul that is surrendered to its Maker. Sometimes you can’t even speak as you bask in the glory of His presence. You never know what kind of blessing He will pour out upon you. How precious it is for the heart and soul to commune with the One who made it. It is priceless and nothing can compare to what God has prepared for His special people who want to fellowship with Him as often as we choose to. The choice is ours for our Father wants us to seek Him. "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship Him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." (John 4: 23-24)

We all have our own special way of praising and worshipping, and God receives those who fear Him and serve Him in sincerity and in truth. "I will praise Thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all Thy marvellous works. I will be glad and rejoice in Thee: I will sing praise to Thy name, O thou most High." (Psalm 9: 1-2) "O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph." (Psalm 47: 1)