"Praise the Lord!...Sing Praises To The Lord...." (Psalm 147)
This is the day of the last five Psalms. "Praise Him...," is a recurring theme in the Book of Psalms, indeed, throughout Scripture. When we are distraught, "Praise Him...." When there seems to be no answers to our deepest cry for help, "Praise Him...." When depression and heartache overwhelm, "Praise Him...."
"Praise Him..," takes my focus from me to the Living Triune God in Jesus Christ. "Praise Him..," is not only a "focus-call," it is also warfare. In, "Praise Him..," that which is attempting to depress, discourage, defeat is not the focus of our lives; Jesus Is. The psalmist said at one point, "I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved...." My call to you and me today? "....Set the Lord always before [you and] me," and, "Praise Him."
Our tendency is to focus on ourselves, our troubles. The Bible teaches us that such focus is the way of further discouragement, ultimate defeat. So, I call you and me today to do what David did, "I have set the Lord always before me...," which is another way of saying, "Praise Him...."
Father, in Jesus' Name, show me how to keep you, "....always before me...." Amen.
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
Hebrews 12:2
Hebrews 12:2
