Raise Your Praise
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Rise and Shine for Jesus!
By Pam Iannello (my late mother)
"Raise Your Praise"
The
book of Psalms consists of 150 independent compositions written by a
number of authors over a spread of many centuries. It is impossible
to sufficiently summarize the richness contained in this lyrical
collection of vivid writings. Every reader will find they contain
hymns that praise God for personal and national salvation. These
reflective arrangements also contain the laments of God's people in
difficult situations as the psalmists looked to God in moments of
private despair and times of national suffering. Amidst their
difficulties they found release by lifting their heartfelt laments
and praises to God. The book of Psalms preserves a poetic record of
the ups and downs of personal and national religious experience. Some
of the most beautiful poems are written during times of despair…
And like all poetry, the psalms communicate their meaning by speaking
to the reader's feelings as well as his mind. Despite the fact that
the psalms are personal, the image of the human writer does not
dominate our view. In the psalms, God alone fills our vision. Each
event or struggle celebrated by a psalm is intermingled with triumph
and peace that can only be found by bringing praise to God. Truly,
Psalm 150 is a fitting conclusion to all of Psalms…
Psalm
150:1-6
Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary:
praise him in the firmament of his power. [2] Praise him for his
mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. [3]
Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the
psaltery and harp. [4] Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise
him with stringed instruments and organs. [5] Praise him upon the
loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. [6] Let
every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.
The
psalmist has certainly encouraged us to take specific steps to adding
some creativity and enthusiasm to our daily worship! Are you
motivated to praise God in such a practical, yet passionate manner?
It’s almost as if the writer is fanatically naming off articles
around him and exhorting us to also look about and grab that which is
at our fingertips to glorify God! Ladies, do you view everything
around you as an instrument by which you can honor the Lord?
Though
the psalmist mentioned a sanctuary, I realize that most of us do not
dwell in church on a daily basis. Nevertheless, our homes are
sanctuaries, are they not? They are safe havens in this wicked world…
Where the Spirit of God dwells
each home is sanctified. So
then, what objects surround you that you could pick up and use to
praise the Lord with zealous dedication? How about the vacuum
cleaner? The telephone? The pen that lies by your keyboard… Perhaps
the garden tools, the blender or mixer in the kitchen cupboard, the
frying pan, and the cookie cutters – what instruments would God
have you see anew as a means to offer praise to Him? It’s
not so much the instrument that matters as the fact that all occasion
is taken to bring honor to God as long as there is breath in our
bodies!
Ladies,
the Lord has done some mighty acts in all our lives, beginning with
the saving of our souls! His power extends through all worlds… But
do we faithfully pronounce His praise in our homes? Is it linked to
our everyday life? Do we bring enough worshipful attention to God’s
excellent greatness? Do we strive to promote the interests of HIS
glory, using even the least likely object to do so? To give praise to
God is to proclaim His merit or worth. How
precious is the Lord to you?
Are you suitably expressing His significance? In this portion of
scripture, the full sounds of a human orchestra are recommended to
sound God’s praises. Likewise, we should summon every member of our
family to echo the same mark of respect in full chorus! The
psalmist’s intent is to rouse every individual to the realization
that praise must be offered to God continually.
Praise is a distinct
sound, the sweetest of all sounds, unlike any other style of
communication. To
think such a matchless sound could be created with human lips… All
of heaven is waiting for our breath to be put to good and holy use!
When is the last time you lifted your perspective of God from the
earthly to the heavenly? Charles Wesley wished for a thousand
tongues to sing His great
Redeemer’s praise… After hearing how he craved a generous
quantity of opportunities to praise the Lord, one can’t help but
consider the stewardship of our solitary tongue! Does the measure of
your praise to God equal the measure of breaths you have taken in
your lifetime? If we were designed only to receive breath when we
uttered praise, would you be dead by now? I say it’s time we
brought ourselves in tune with Psalm 150: Praise YE the Lord!
Psalm
111:1
Praise
ye the Lord. I will praise the Lord with
my whole heart, in the
assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.
God
Bless,
Pam
Isaiah
60:1&2
Copyright
2003 Pamela A. Iannello
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