Let All Peoples Praise the Lord
“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles! (All you nations)
Laud Him, all you peoples!
For His merciful kindness is great toward us,
And the truth of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!” (New King James Version)
**********************************
“Praise God, everybody!
Applaud God, all people!
His love has taken over our lives;
God’s faithful ways are eternal.
Hallelujah!” (The Message)
Back in the days before interstate highways or motorways, people used to describe very small towns as “so small that if you blink, you’ll miss it.” This phrase indicated the town was so small that you could be through it before you even realized there was a town, no matter how attractive it might be. This psalm is like one of those small towns; you can practically go through it without ever noticing what a gem of a psalm it is.
“Praise God, everybody! Applaud God, all people!” There is no people group on the face of the earth that does not owe its existence to God. If we are alive, we should be praising God for our lives. As long as we have life, we have the hope of something better happening.
“For His merciful kindness is great toward us…” “His love has taken over our lives” These two translations supplement each other. God has given us everything we have, no matter how much we want to vaunt ourselves that we are self-made. Our lives hang on a thread. Only this morning I have read prayer requests for a man who has suddenly developed a series of aneurysms affecting various blood vessels in his brain. Two other friends are undergoing stent procedures to open arteries to their hearts. If you have awakened this morning and everything in your body works, or mostly works, praise God!
“And the truth of the Lord endures forever.” “God’s faithful ways are eternal.” God’s ways are true, righteous, just, and faithful. God never fails. Politicians may orate and national leaders may prevaricate, but God remains true to His own nature.
“Praise the Lord!” “Hallelujah!”
APPLICATION: How can we praise God? History is full of wonderful examples in art, and music, and literature, but praise can be very simple. Years ago while living in New York City, we were training for a marathon. Each Sunday morning, we would run three times around the perimeter of Central Park, followed by a 3-mile loop around the lower end of the park. That last 3 miles could be brutal. I found I could grind it out if I just kept chanting “Praise you, Jesus! Praise you, Jesus!” as I ran. Since then there have been many times when I have faced difficult situations, and I have found myself repeating that same chant.
The Bible tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people. (Psalm 22:3) When we are worshiping God, there is no room for worry because our focus is all in the other direction. As we enter this new year, many of us are anxious about a number of things-work, school, finances, relationships, international crises, and upcoming elections. If you are looking for things to worry about, you can always find something. But conversely, if you look for things about which to praise God, you will find those things as well.
Praise or worry-which will it be? Praise heals and soothes our bodies, minds, and spirits. Worry leads to peptic ulcer disease, heart attacks, high blood pressure, strokes, and other related problems. Several years ago, there was a song that advised, “Praise the Lord! He can work through those who praise Him. Praise the Lord, for our God inhabits praise. Praise the Lord, for the chains that seem to bind you serve only to remind you that they fall powerless behind you when you praise Him!”
Now is the time to shrug off those chains of worry, kick them into a corner, and praise God. God will either change you, giving you strength to endure your situation, or He might change your situation, or He might change both you and your situation.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, many of us are worried about any number of things. Help us to use those worries as prayer points so that You can transform us as well as our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
Leave a comment