Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God all my life long. Psalm 146:1
God-Above, Maker of Heaven and Earth,
How often do we pause to consider who you are,
your graciousness,
your goodness,
your generosity?
Not often enough.
When we take time to consider
your “wondrous works” and “mighty acts,”
we receive a blessing—
our worry shrinks and our confidence grows.
Let’s start naming just a few of the things we praise you for:
You “uphold all who are falling
and raise up all who are bowed down” (Psalm 145:15)
You are our help and our hope,
the God “who made heaven and earth, the sea,
and all that is in them” (Psalm 146:6).
You “execute justice for the oppressed,
you give food to the hungry” (Psalm 146:7).
You “lift up the humble;
you cast the wicked to the ground” (Psalm 147:6).
You “take pleasure in your people;
you adorn the humble with salvation” (Psalm 149:4).
Good and gracious Father,
for all of these things and thousands more,
we praise your name,
we rejoice in you,
we adore you,
we give you glory.
Develop in us a regular rhythm
of praising all of your goodness.
In Jesus’ wonder-full name. Amen.
Read one or more from Psalms 145-150.
Elizabeth Reynolds Turnage is the author of Preparing for Glory: Biblical Answers to 40 Questions on Living and Dying in Hope of Heaven.
(affiliate link)
The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17
Lord,
We believe; help our unbelief.
We believe you have already come into our midst
in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
We believe you are a mighty one
who has already saved us from our sins
through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
But in the next line of this magnificent verse,
we stutter and stumble.
We think that maybe you will rejoice in us
some day in the future
when we are more holy,
that you will love us
some day in the future
when we never sin again,
that you will exult in us with loud singing
some day in the future
when we’ve finally earned our way to heaven.
But that’s not what Scripture tells us.
The gospel good news
for all who trust in Jesus
is that right this minute,
you are rejoicing over us,
right this minute
you are quieting us with your love,
right this minute
and you are exulting over us with loud singing.
You saved us.
You love us.
You delight in us.
You sing extra-loud over us,
like the five-year-old who loves to sing
at the top of his lungs
because he’s so happy.
Help us today to sit quietly
and listen for the sound
of your delight in us,
and may that delight
change the way we live and love
today and every day.
In Jesus’ saving name. Amen.
Read Zephaniah 3:14-20.
Elizabeth Reynolds Turnage is the author of Preparing for Glory: Biblical Answers to 40 Questions on Living and Dying in Hope of Heaven.
(affiliate link)
