Psalm 148
Bible Passage: Psalms 148
Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
Praise Him in the heights!
– Psalms 148: 1
Today’s psalm, like the few more recent ones, is about praising God. There are 13 uses of the word “praise” in just 14 verses. That’s almost one “praise” per verse! (Fun fact: Psalms 150 has a higher usage rate.)
This psalm is like a command that everything under the sun, including the sun itself, the celestial bodies and the angels praise our Lord God Almighty, because He had created everything. The psalmist called for all people on earth, regardless of status, gender or age to praise God because His name and His glory are above all.
I will praise you, O God, with all my heart, and I will glorify Your name forevermore…
– Psalms 86: 12
Simply because He is the Creator of everything, our God deserves all praises from everything and everyone. In our Lord’s prayer, the first thing mentioned is about hallowing His name.
Praising God is a very fundamental thing in Christian living that I feel many of us often forget to do on a regular basis.
Praising God No Matter What
There was a testimony about a sister from a church somewhere who was very well known to always praise God, not matter what happened. I can’t exactly remember what was mentioned about this person, but it went something like this:
Got her fingers hurt when she accidentally closed a car door on them? “Praise God that it’s only my fingers and they’re still attached!”
Caught a nasty cold? “Praise God I’m still able to walk around and do things!”
Got a long-time illness and ended up in hospital towards the end of her life? “Praise God that I’m going to return home soon!”
This example impressed me as I listened simply because this person knew how to find a reason to praise God under any circumstances, which is something that I struggle to do many a times. And since we’re in a Singapore society, I think you’ll agree that we instead always find some reason to complain. Have we ever felt like the people of Israel in the wilderness?
And I think that if we love God, there really is something we can find in everything that has happened to us that we gave use to praise God. We just have to reflect on them and realise that God truly cares for us. Even the simple fact that we can wake up in the morning to experience a new day and that we are still in His grace is enough reason to praise Him!
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose…
– Romans 8: 28
May God continue to give us the wisdom and the strength we require in our lives, and that we always find something to praise God for.