Praise the Lord! That’s a phrase that we hear often in Christian circles. We read it in Scripture. We sing it in various hymns. We may even hear it exclaimed when something good happens. But have you ever really stopped to consider what it means? Or has it become on of those trite phrases that we say but don’t really mean?
When I Googled the definition of the word praise, I found that it means to “express one’s respect and gratitude toward (a deity).” That fits well with the biblical understanding of what it means to praise. For instance, in Psalm 150:1-2 (ESV), we read the following: “Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness!” These verses tell us a lot about what it means to truly praise the Lord.
First, we see that we our praise is to be directed to God.
This may seem obvious, but I think that sometimes we forget that God is a person. We tend to treat Him like some magical force instead of a personal being with thoughts and feelings. We fall into a habit of singing praise songs without really thinking about who we are addressing in those songs. We say things like “thank goodness,” rather than thanking God, who is the source of all our blessings.
However, God is the one to whom all praise belongs, and He alone is worthy of our praise. When we begin to see God as a person, and when we start to learn who He really is, then we can’t help but want to praise Him.
Next, we see praising God is expected of believers.
There are many reasons to praise God, but if for no other reason, we should praise God because we are commanded to. We are told to praise the Lord. That doesn’t leave room for argument.
It’s easy to find excuses for not praising, but the truth is, when we fail to praise Him, we are actually disobeying one of God’s commands. It may sound like God is arrogant or selfish by demanding that we praise Him. Although our praise does bring glory to Him, it’s also for our benefit. It helps us to keep our focus on God, where it belongs. Praising God can also bring us peace and joy.
Then, we see that we should praise God for His “mighty deeds,” or for what He has done.
God deserves our praise because of all that He has done. Below is a list of just a few of God’s “mighty deeds” for those who love Him.
God has…
- Sent His Son to die in your place
- Chosen you and adopted you into His family
- Forgiven you of your sins
- Declared you righteous and innocent in His sight because of the death of Christ
- Granted you faith to believe in Him
- Given you everything you need to live life on this Earth
- Promised you a home in heaven some day
This is not by any means an exhaustive list of God’s works. But this is a good place to start when trying to find reasons to praise Him.
Finally, we see that we are to praise God for His “excellent greatness,” or for who He is.
God deserves praise just because He is God and we are not. As we study God’s attributes, we find many reasons to praise Him.
God is…
- Holy
- Loving
- Just
- Merciful
- Wise
- Faithful
- Eternal
- Immutable (never changing)
- Infinite (without limits)
- Omnipotent (all-powerful)
- Omniscient (all-knowing)
- Omnipresent (everywhere at the same time)
Again, this is not a comprehensive list, but we can spend a long time praising God for these and His many other attributes.
Now we know that we should praise God, but how can we do that? Here are a few ways:
- In song: There are many amazing praise songs out there. Pick one that you like, and sing along. Just make sure that you are focusing on the words that you are singing, and that you really mean them.
- In prayer: Often our prayers are mainly petitions for what we want or need, but try to spend some time just telling God how much you love Him and how thankful you are for what He’s done.
- In conversation: Hebrews 13:5 says that our sacrifice of praise is “the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.” Simply telling others about who God is and what He has done for you is a great way to praise Him.
“Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” These words are part of the Doxology, which we sing quite often at my church. In order to do this, we must know who God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are. Below are some resources to help you learn more about them.
The Chosen
The first-ever multi-season show about Jesus
Portrait of the Messiah 31-Day Devotional Journal
This 31-day devotional journal will help you get a clearer picture of Jesus as you study who He is and what He has done for you!
30 Days of Praise Journal
This free journal includes
· A 30-day Scripture reading/writing schedule based on the “I am” sayings of Christ, found in the book of John
· A 30 Days of Praise record sheet to write down on reason each day to praise God
· A Bible study journal page, to write out the Scripture passage or notes on that passage, as well as what it teaches about Jesus
