A Praising People
OPENING PRAYER:
Lord of all life, you are my guardian and guide. I thank you for new mercies this day.
1 Praise the Lord.[a]
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
praise him in the heights above.
2 Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his heavenly hosts.
3 Praise him, sun and moon;
praise him, all you shining stars.
4 Praise him, you highest heavens
and you waters above the skies.
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for at his command they were created,
6 and he established them for ever and ever—
he issued a decree that will never pass away.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,
8 lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
stormy winds that do his bidding,
9 you mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars,
10 wild animals and all cattle,
small creatures and flying birds,
11 kings of the earth and all nations,
you princes and all rulers on earth,
12 young men and women,
old men and children.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.
14 And he has raised up for his people a horn,[b]
the praise of all his faithful servants,
of Israel, the people close to his heart.
Praise the Lord.
Footnotes:
[a] Psalm 148:1 Hebrew Hallelu Yah; also in verse 14
[b] Psalm 148:14 Horn here symbolizes strength.
Psalm 148
REFLECT:
Tell God how you feel today as you come to his Word.
How’s your posture? Are you standing or sitting? Upright or hunched? God wants us to have a ‘posture’ of praise. Whether we’re walking or running, climbing or skydiving, God wants us to be a people who passionately and persistently praise him as the one who is above all others. He alone is worthy of this, and his name stands alone (v 13). The psalmist understands this and has given us 14 wonderful verses packed full of expressions of praise to the Lord. Has he left anything or anyone out?! He praises the heights to the depths (vs 1,7), angels, sun, moon and stars and even the weather (vs 3,8).
But what do we do when we don’t feel like praising God? Notice that neither this psalm nor anywhere else in the Bible instructs us to praise God only when we feel like it. Instead, we are encouraged to praise God continually (see Psalm 34:1). So how do we praise? We get on and do it. Why not take today’s psalm and simply start reading it out loud? Not as a recital but as your own expression of praise to the Lord. When you start, you’ll be doing so only because your will has decided to do this out of obedience, but by the time you’ve finished, your heart and your soul may have caught up and joined in!
APPLY:
In what ways can praising God affect your feelings?
CLOSING PRAYER:
For your name’s sake Lord, for your glory, do something mighty in worship in me today. Inspire, surprise, and fill me with your Spirit as I worship you.
WORSHIP:
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