Today’s Readings:
Psalm 89:1-18
Psalm 92
Psalm 95
Psalm 103
15 Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound!
Psalm 89:15-18
Lord, they walk in the light of Your face.
16 In Your name they rejoice all the day,
And by Your righteousness they are exalted.
17 For You are the glory of their strength,
And by Your favor our horn is exalted.
18 For our shield belongs to the Lord,
And our king to the Holy One of Israel.
The Lord says,
Praise. My Name and My Person deserves praise. When you think of Me, your response should be praise. As you go through your day, you should recognize all that has come to you from My hand — all of the favor, the protection, the provision — and your response should be praise. Praise is imbedded in your very DNA. It is knit into the fabric of your heart and soul. When your live devoid of praise, you feel empty, listless and depressed. But when you give yourself over to be who I created you to be, when you feed your soul with what it needs to thrive, your heart can soar, your eyes can see, you take notice of the beauty of My creation and you recognize your place in it. What is the way to get there? Praise.
Turn your day around, your attitude around, your life around with praise. Remove your eyes from yourself, your circumstances and your problems. Put your eyes on Me and praise. Praise from a deficit if you have to; your soul will get filled whether your tank is empty or full. Praise can prime and fill an empty pump. Praise from a place of dryness and a feeling of desolation is a beautiful and acceptable sacrifice to Me.
92 It is good to give thanks to the Lord
Psalm 92:1-4
And to sing praises to Your name, Most High;
2 To declare Your goodness in the morning
And Your faithfulness by night,
3 With the ten-stringed lute and with the harp,
With resounding music on the lyre.
4 For You, Lord, have made me joyful by what You have done,
I will sing for joy over the works of Your hands.
What you might not understand is that praise benefits you more than it does Me. Praise reorders your heart, your inner life, your mindset and your priorities. Praise gets you back into alignment with Me. Yes, I deserve it, and yes, I treasure your beautiful thoughts and words and songs to Me. They create connection between us and are part of developing intimacy between us. But don’t think that praise only benefits Me. Praise does so much for you. Praise reduces anxiety and stress. It acknowledges that you are dependent on Me and you are counting on Me to come through for you. Praise in the night hours will gift you with beautiful sleep. Praise in the daytime will cause your frustrations, difficulties and hardships to shrink before your eyes.
Praise is a tool for your own preservation, your own restoration, your own protection. Praise will build a wall around your life that protects you from the advances of the enemy, because he cannot stand to hear you worship Me. Don’t minimize the power of your words, your voice. Don’t underestimate or cede the authority you have been given by Jesus. Stand up. Pick yourself up if you can. If not, stay seated. Praise from your position of being in a puddle on the ground if that’s where you are. Praise will dig you out of the hole. Praise will cause your spirit and your eyes, your heart and your face to be lifted up. It will cause you to rise. It will revive your bones, your spirit and your outlook. Praise will put you back together.
103 Bless the Lord, my soul,
Psalm 103:1-5
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, my soul,
And do not forget any of His benefits;
3 Who pardons all your guilt,
Who heals all your diseases;
4 Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with favor and compassion;
5 Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
Praise will strengthen as you build upon it. As you dwell on My faithfulness, you are tilling the soil of your heart. As you recount My faithfulness, you are planting seeds of faith and remembrance. As you declare that I Am faithful, I will cause these seeds to grow into mighty fruitful trees. Their fruit will serve as reminders of My love, My goodness, and My favor. Living a lifestyle of praise is like walking around in a beautiful, protected orchard, where the fruit is always ripe and available. Eating this fruit reminds you of My goodness and causes you to praise Me anew.
12 The righteous person will flourish like the palm tree,
Psalm 92:12-15
He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Planted in the house of the Lord,
They will flourish in the courtyards of our God.
14 They will still yield fruit in advanced age;
They will be full of sap and very green,
15 To declare that the Lord is just;
He is my rock, and there is no malice in Him.
Don’t neglect the praise that is burning inside you to get out. Sing. Worship. Speak words of thanksgiving and delight to Me. Live a lifestyle of unceasing praise, in unceasing communication with Me. I never get tired of listening to you. But I will say, what’s true in the natural is also true with Me. Beautiful words of praise, beautiful words of thanksgiving, gorgeous words of love and awe are far more palatable than complaints, self-degradation, grumbling and criticism. What do you think does a better job of developing intimacy? Of freeing your soul? Of lifting your own life up? Of course it is praise! Criticism and negative words are self-centered. Even if they are not about you, they are the result of triggers and wounds in your soul. Choose to put them aside. Words of praise are about Me, about My goodness, about your delight in the people I have put in your path. These are not about you, and when it’s not about you, you are a source of delight to all who come in contact with you. It’s an amazing truth.
6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
Psalm 95:6-9
Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
7 For He is our God,
And we are the people of His pasture,
And the sheep of His hand.
Today, if you will hear His voice:
8 “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,
As in the day of trial in the wilderness,
9 When your fathers tested Me;
They tried Me, though they saw My work.
Speak life. Look for the gold in others and in your own life. Seek and choose to find new ways and new reasons to praise Me. Watch how your whole life is transformed. The posture of praise is one of humility but also one of great exaltation, as you recognize your place in Me. Today is a great day to start. This moment is a perfect time to start.
I’m not asking for perfection. I’m asking you to try. It will get easier, and you will get more fluent in time. Pursue Me. Choose a lifestyle of praise. See how it transforms you and how people respond to you. See how it transforms our relationship and the insights you gain, the revelation that is imparted and the security you feel in the deep connection you forge with Me.
How to Respond
- Repent for any grumbling, gossip, negative inner monologue and criticism of others.
- Declare, Lord, I was made for praise. I choose to dedicate my life to giving you honor and praise. Help me to keep my eyes on you and to bring you unceasing beautiful offerings of praise.
- Make a point to tell others about how God is moving in your life. Speak about His grace in a way that shows thankfulness and honor to Him.
- Discipline your mind to not accept or entertain negative thought patterns, self-criticism, criticism of others. Choose to keep your mouth shut instead of speaking critical words or complaining. Replace those thoughts and words with praise and compliments. See how it changes your heart and the way you experience life.
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