Daily Devotion
Praise The Name Of The Lord
By: Marissa Wolf
“Praise ye the LORD. Praise, O ye servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD. Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’S name is to be praised.”
Psalm 113:1-3
How often do we take time out of our day to praise the Lord? Praising the Lord isn’t just singing worship songs and hymns, but it goes even deeper than that. Do we give God all of the glory in our days from the time we wake up to the time we go to bed, and even while we sleep? The Lord has done many wonderful things, He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, lifteth the needy out of the dunghill, and He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children, not to mention all of the personal works the Lord has done for each and every single one of us. He is worthy of our praises! (See: Psalm 113:7,9).
Do we express our gratitude to the Lord through praise? One could be washing a pile of dirty dishes by hand and could start to get overwhelmed due to the numerous piles of stains that need to be scrubbed extra hard which will make the task longer, but we can still praise the Lord through the mundane task while doing all things heartily unto Him alone. The devil may make it seem like it’s such a hard thing to do and will tempt our flesh to not praise the Lord or to count it all joy when trials arise. (See: 1 Corinthians 10:13 and James 1:2-4). When this happens, we must deny the flesh and repent. (See: Acts 3:19). Worship to the Lord can be as simple as doing a repetitive task at work unto the Lord. The Lord loves it when we praise Him in our actions!
We can praise the Lord when we go out of our way to serve others for His glory! (See: John 15:13 and Galatians 6:2). Such as helping a brother or sister in Christ in a time of need or just to surprise them with the gift of God’s love! It could be something like going out of the way to make a meal for someone, be a friend to them, pray for them, just giving them the gift of your time, and even your help are some examples of how we can praise the Lord. The Lord loves it when we consider one another as someone somewhere is depending on us to do what the Lord has called us to do. (See: Hebrews 10:24).
The Lord is good, and it is good to praise Him! (See: Psalm 135:3). Singing His praises is part of the Christlike lifestyle that should be done daily on a continual basis. Yet, it is something that we often forget to do, when we get so caught up in our life, that we forget Who the Creator of our life is and in turn we don’t give Him the full glory and praise that the Lord deserves. (See: Genesis 2:7, 2 Corinthians 10:17, and Colossians 3:23-24). This can be so easy to do especially when we “don’t feel like it.” The devil is making it really hard for you to not praise the Lord. If it’s something the Lord calls us to do and we don’t feel like doing it, we must push through and do it as the devil is there “encouraging” us not to do it. The devil’s attack may have been sent as a way to discourage you from praising the Lord, but we must say no to the devil’s discouragement and let it bring out the warrior for Christ within us. We all fall short of this, but we must ask for forgiveness and repent from when we do fall into this trap, and stand back up with Christ within us. (See: Romans 3:23 and Proverbs 24:16). We are to be led by the Spirit, not that of our feelings or emotions. (See: Romans 8:14). We shouldn’t ever feel unqualified when we are praising and serving the Lord. Remember, God looks at your heart, not your past. (See: 1 Samuel 16:7). If God calls us, He will qualify us. The Lord has His plan laid before us, we must keep choosing to walk in it. (See: Jeremiah 29:11 and Deuteronomy 5:33).
When we lay down our man-made “strength” and desires to in turn follow Christ, the Lord can make His strength perfect in weakness. (See: 2 Corinthians 12:9). For without Christ, we can do nothing. (See: John 15:5). The Lord alone gives us the strength, patience, courage, joy, confidence, contentment, understanding, and every good virtue to push through and to keep fighting the good fight of faith! (See: 1 Timothy 6:12). We must keep resisting the devil and all his temptations and tactics. (See: James 4:7-10). To do this, we must continually be in the Word daily (hearing, doing, and studying it) and hiding the Scriptures in our hearts. (See: James 1:22-25, 2 Timothy 2:15, and Psalm 119:11). It is also important that we keep praying to the Lord and especially praying on the armor of God and wholly submitting ourselves to the Lord in full humility. (See: 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Philippians 4:6-7, and Ephesians 6:11-18).
It seems the world as of late feels so heavy and earthly circumstance seeks to weigh us down. The Bible instructs us to put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness! (See: Isaiah 61:3). Our flesh must die and become crucified with Christ. (See: Galatians 2:20). We must keep following and fearing the Lord and count it all joy amidst the trials. (See: Proverbs 9:10). Putting into action godliness with contentment will help us to keep praising the Lord and choosing to walk in the Spirit and to let our relationship with the Lord grow! (See: 1 Timothy 6:6 and Galtians 5:16-26). Even though the world may feel heavy and we will go through tribulation, we are to be of good cheer as the Lord has overcome the world! (See: John 16:33).
Do you praise the Lord in the mundane? When your spirit is heavy, do you put on the garment of praise? Do you say no to the devil when he’s trying to halter your praise to the Lord? Will you lay down your strength to seek the Lord’s strength for your life? Do you hear, study, and do God’s word? Do you put into action godliness with contentment? Do you go out of your way to serve others for Christ?
“Praise ye the LORD. I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.”
Psalm 111:1
