Reflection on ‘Praising the Lord!! August 6, 2024

For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Isaiah 55:12.

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! Psalm 150:1-2.

The first verse is simple, Praise the Lord! That’s where we can meet Him, in a meeting place of those who love God on earth, and then in the Heavens!

Our invitation to Heaven comes from His Son, Jesus, in John 14:1-3: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

It is through Jesus, that we know God. Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know Him and have seen Him.” John 14:6-7.

         Praise Him through His mighty Deeds! The Bible is a roll call of those who Praised, Believed, Trusted, and Obeyed God. Abraham, Noah, King David, Samuel, Elijah, Moses, Jacob. Hebrews 11 is a roll call of the Faithful in the Old Testament. In the New Testament, Apostle Paul, and the Disciples of Jesus Christ.

The saving of The Children of Israel as they Egypt where they were enslaved. And the miracles of Jesus show the power over the wind and storm.

God created the heavens and the earth in the beginning. Everywhere we look, we see the love that God has for his chosen people. It all stems from God’s unending Love. See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so. we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be, has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him because we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who thus hopes in Him purifies himself as He is pure. I John 3:1-3.

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” I Peter 1:14-16.

         These are the first two verses of the Why and Where we should follow God and His Word. Verses 3 through 5 are the how.

How do we feel when we begin to praise God? How did King David think and feel when he praised God? Psalm 8:1,3-4. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.  When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon, and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?

What do trumpets, lutes, harps, dance, strings, pipes, and cymbals have in common? They are instruments of sounds that praise the Lord. Do we need those to praise the Lord? While taking rehab after a fall, I found the following verse that proved that I could still praise the Lord. So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. I Corinthians 10:31. So many things and ways we can use to praise God. It is our attitude of the Fruit of the Spirit that colors our minds into hearts of Praise. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. Galatians 5:22-23. Where does Peace come from?  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. John 14:26-27.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Psalm 150:6.

When God the Heavens and the Earth in the beginning, God gave living things breath. That is the first thing we wait for when a new baby is born! I remember when someone told me to breathe on a tree; it helps keep them alive.

         Can you imagine taking away what God has given to a new baby? The breath that is God-given is precious and gives life. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” And He laid His hands on them and went away. Matthew 19:14-15.

         If we have God’s Breath in our lungs, this Scripture applies to each of us. “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. ’The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31.

God’s Love is the key to the Joy in Living each Day. By this, we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So, we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. I John 4:13-16.