Praise the Lord!

Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord (Psalm 150: 1, 2, & 6).

Few people praise God as much as He deserves, even though it is one of our main purposes in life. The Westminster Catechism, written in 1646, states that "The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever." Praise helps with this. Brother Lawrence, a devoted sixteenth-century monk wrote, " . . . we ought to propose to ourselves to become, in this life, the most perfect worshipers of God we can possibly be as we hope to be through all eternity." Most of us fall short when it comes to praise and worship.

"Our Father which art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name (Matthew 6:9b).

In the model prayer we call "The Lord's Prayer" that Jesus used to teach us how to pray, He begins by praising God. Throughout His ministry, He gave honor and glory to the Father. Dick Eastman writes in his book, The Hour That Changes the World, "Praise is more than a single aspect of prayer. Praise is a way of life." Is it a way of life for you?

O Lord, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name . . . (Isaiah 25:1a).

True praise and worship isn't just an outward display but a matter of the heart. It's an attitude of reverence, honor, love, and joy in the Lord. Praise, worship, and thankfulness all go hand in hand. They pull our focus away from self and put it on God where it should have been all along. When we center our attention on how perfect, holy, and awesome God is and know we are His and He loves us, we'll find ourselves living in joy despite what is happening around us. Hallelujah! 

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