Devotional #30

Praise the Lord! Praise the name of the Lord; Praise Him, O you servants of the Lord!

Psalm 135:1

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Do you praise the Lord? No, I don't just mean praise Him on Sunday mornings in church, while singing a hymn. I mean do you really praise Him? Do you praise Him day in and day out? Do you praise Him in every single circumstance, and is the praise of your Savior continually on your lips, throughout the day? All too often today, when we hear the word worship or when we think of praising our Lord, we just think of singing hymns to Him on Sunday mornings, and worshipping Him while at church. Yes, it is very important-in fact, we're commanded-to sing praises to Him and it's also very, very important to attend church and to praise Him and worship Him there. But praise and worship is much more than that!

My father has often reminded us that life is not about us-it's about Christ! It's about serving the Lord, obeying His commands, glorifying Him, and living our lives in such a way that He receives all the honor, praise, adoration, glory and worship. Daddy often likes to recite 1 Corinthians 10:31: "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." Everything we say, do, and think throughout the day is to be glorifying and honoring to Christ, and should be bringing praise to Him. When we are obeying His commands, that is a form of praise. We are glorifying, honoring and praising Him when we are living the way He commands us to. His praises are also to always be on our lips! We are to often be praising Him, not only in singing, etc., but we are to also bring praises to Him by witnessing to others about Him. By telling others (those in your family, friends, acquaintences, etc.) about the wonderful blessings God has given you, the miraculous works He has performed in your heart and life, you will be praising God as you ought to be! We should always be telling others about His goodness, and are to be praising Him always.

Next time you're having a hard day, are frustrated over something, or things just don't seem to be going right, look for something for which to praise the Lord for. Believe me, you won't have to think very long before you find a whole big list of blessings from Him! Continually praise Him throughout your days, despite what your circumstances may be. Live your life in such a way that anyone who comes into contact with you will automatically know, without a doubt, that you are His, by the way you live-by living a life of praise to your Savior.