Praise the Lord– actually praise Him

Good morning, sweet friends!

I am still working my way through Psalms, one Psalm at a time, through mid February. Today I read Psalm 117 and had to stop and share a few thoughts.

"Praise the Lord, all you nations;
extol him, all you peoples.
For great is his love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord."

Psalm 117, NIV

I’d love to talk about that for a minute, if we can. Yep his love IS great toward us and His faithfulness amazes me. So should I just shout (or say or think) “Praise the Lord!”?

I think praise takes more than that.

Many years (or umm, a few decades ago) I was at a *junior high church retreat. One of the things that was shared with me, that struck me then and has stayed with me was the use of the term “Praise the Lord.”

The presenter at the retreat explained that “Praise the Lord” is an instruction. It is not how we praise, it is instructing us to praise.

So often people say “Praise the Lord” and think that is praise. But it’s not.

Praise is pointing out those amazing things someone offers or does and expressing appreciation or amazement for those things.

That is my own definition up there. So let’s go with one with more authority, too.

Oxford Languages, Googles definition provider or choice, gives this definition for the verb form of praise:

Praise (verb): express warm approval or admiration of.

So when the Bible instructs us to “praise the Lord,” it is telling us to express warm approval or admiration of the Lord.

Does saying “Praise the Lord! do that?

Nope.

I wouldn’t shout “Praise Jack!” to my son after he did something noteworthy. I wouldn’t do the same to my husband, my friends, my coworkers… and I shouldn’t to my Father, or anyone to whom I want to express my utmost admiration or appreciation. All of these people need to know WHAT they did and HOW I feel.

For Jack, (or any of my children) it might be “I love that you unloaded the dishwasher!” or “Great job in getting into your college of choice!” or “The way you _____ totally rocked! Way to go!!”

Or to my husband: “Thanks, Honey, for all you do to provide for our family!” or “I love how you shared your thoughts with me. That really helps me to understand your perspective better” “You rock at the grill!” “Thanks for being such a fun and caring dad for our children… I love how you ____”

Or to our Father….”What an incredible day today already is! I love the sunshine and gentle breeze. It’s perfect. Thanks for letting me soak it in!!” or “I was so nervous about those scans and yet the cancer did not spread… thank you for that good news… and for the medical team you put into place to guide my mom’s care. You are in every detail.” or “Thanks for watching over my child at college and always.” or “Wow! I love it when I see your fingerprints all over my life… you amaze me, God.”

Those are all expressions of praise.

And that, more then saying “Praise the Lord” actually praises Him. It helps you to see and appreciate his incredible power and actions even more, too.

Are you with me here?

Praise is important. We are instructed to do it repeatedly throughout the Bible. It isn’t just a minor passing idea. So it’s important and it’s important to do it right. I don’t think the act of praising God is for God’s benefit. I believe it is for our own benefit.

The instruction to praise the Lord has much more to do with us, our heart, our focus.

I’d love to know what you think about that… and if you have a regular praise practice or just let it flow as inspired.

Thank you so much for reading what I have to share, for wanting to learn more about the Holy Spirit alongside me and thank you, especially, for your kind comments. You really do rock and encourage me.

In love,

Amy

*Thank you Tallowood Baptist Church for your incredibly rich and meaty youth programs in the ’80s. I learned SO MUCH from you.