Begin This New Year With Praising GOD
Praising God does not come naturally; it is not an easy thing to do. This is because we tend to be a “give me-generation” or a “I want-generation”. Thus, when we come before God, we often end up asking Him for something instead of praising Him.
Reasons to Praise God
1. Our Almighty God is worthy of our praise and worship.
The Psalmist says in Psalm 18:3, “I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.” Indeed, we need to learn to praise our God. John the Apostle tells us about God being praised by angels in heaven. This is evident in Revelation 5:11-12, “And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.”
2. We are called to praise and worship God. When God saved us from our sins, He has also called us to worship Him.
1 Peter 2:5, 9 “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ… But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.” Indeed, because God has brought us out of the dark world of sin and self, we should be praising Him because He has chosen us to be His holy people.
3. Worship of God changes us.
In Jeremiah 2:5, God says that the Israelites followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves. “What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?” Yes, we can become like what we worship. If we worship superficial things, our lives become superficial. If we worship perverted things, our minds become perverted. If we worship evil things, our lives become evil. But if we worship the true and holy God, we will learn to lead godly lives. 2 Cor 3:18 tells us that we are changed by God’s Holy Spirit to be like Him: “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” As we spend more time praising God, we also spend less energy criticizing or judging others.
4. Praising God defeats our enemy.
Things or people around us can easily become our enemies. We become preoccupied with thoughts of them. These can cause us so much anxiety and stress. Slowly, our minds and bodies succumb to disappointment and despair. But, we are reminded in Ps 8:2, “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightiest still the enemy and the avenger.” Indeed, when Christians praise God, evil is put to flight. “Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the hight praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand; To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people.”
How Do We Praise God
1. We can praise God with our voices.
“I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” (Ps 34:3). “Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.” (Ps 63:3). We can praise Him when things go well, and even when situations in life are not well. Paul and Silas praised God even when they were prisoners (Acts 16:25)
2. We can praise God with our bodies.
“Thus will I bless Thee while I live; I will lift up my hands in thy name.” (Ps 63:4). “O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.” (Ps 95:6).
3. We can praise God with music.
“Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; praise Him with the psaltery and harp. Praise Him with the timbrel and dance: praise Him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise Him upon the loud cymbals; praise Him upon the high cymbals.” (Ps 150:3-5)
4. We can praise God with our emotions.
“O clap your hands, all you people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.” (Ps 47:1)
5. We can praise God with our lives.
“Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor 10:31).
As we start this New Year, can we learn to praise God with all our hearts? Praise Him when we are happy; praise Him when we go through trials and tribulations. Praise Him when we go through sickness and pain. For it is when we praise Him, we are delivered from all our fears. “O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” (Ps 34:3-4).
Let Us Improve In Our Praise Of God
1. Let us prepare the night before Sunday.
When we come before God in worship, let us not come unprepared. Our preparation comes even on the night before Sunday’s worship. Let us sleep early so that our bodies would be well rested when we turn up at the worship service. When we turn off the television early or switch off our computers or even our mobile phones, we will be able to sleep early.
Then we can wake up early and go to church on time. Our minds need to be rested before we present ourselves to God. Some of us prepare our clothing the night before going to school or work the next morning. Can we also do that before we meet with God on Sunday morning? Let us not be slipshod in our dressing, or think that we are going out shopping or on a picnic. “Let all things be done decently and in order.” (1 Cor 14:40).
2. Let us not come empty-handed when we worship and praise God.
In the Old Testament, the people of God would bring an offering to God, their first-fruits from their harvest, their best produce in their farms. Proverbs 3:9 says, “Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the first fruits of all thine increase.” If we are not working, let us “offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” (Heb 13:15). Can the young people do that for the Lord?
3. Let us give praise that God is worthy of.
To praise God means to prize God. The word “prize” means “to value”, “to esteem”, “to cherish” something or someone, but it also means to estimate something of its worth. So when we praise God we are valuing Him, we are esteeming Him, we are estimating His worth. In other words, in praising God we are putting together all that we know about God, and we put these into words of praise and thanksgiving. Ps 50:23 says, “Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that orderth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.” God promises His salvation to those who praise Him and lead righteous lives before Him.
As we gather for worship of God each Sunday, we are entering into His presence. So let us not get distracted by things and people around us. Let us focus on Him. After greeting each other, let us not be caught up in private conversations which sometimes distract others in worship of God. If you are sitting next to someone who loves to talk, perhaps you should change your seat. Let us turn off our mobile phones and concentrate on lifting our voices to Him. Yes, let us enter His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise! Let us make melody in our hearts as we offer words of praise to our God each time we are gathered before Him.
Pastor Bob Phee