Praising God

Psalm 147

 ¹ Praise the LORD.

   How good it is to sing praises to our God,
   how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

 ² The LORD builds up Jerusalem;
   he gathers the exiles of Israel.
³ He heals the brokenhearted
   and binds up their wounds.

 ⁴ He determines the number of the stars
   and calls them each by name.
⁵ Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
   his understanding has no limit.
⁶ The LORD sustains the humble
   but casts the wicked to the ground. 

I have come to learn that praising God is a choice.  Yes, it should be the automatic response of those who have given themselves to Jesus, however, there are times in our lives when problems or weaknesses take over, and praising God seems distant from us. 

In the above psalm, God is being praised for what he has done, what he is doing, and what he continues to do. I suggest to today's Christian, even on the bluest of Mondays, even in the times of despair, and even when we are feeling weak, praising God is the first step toward the remedy we need. 

If our God has determined the number of the stars and calls them each by name, then he knows your problems and difficulties and is concerned about you. If he is great and mighty in power, and his understanding has no limit, then I know he cares and understands me. 

Our God promises to heal the brokenhearted and to bind up their wounds.  He is in the business of making us whole again. 

I love the way the psalmist is talking to God about things like exiles, building up Jerusalem, naming all the stars, sustaining the humble, and his limitless power and understanding.  When I can read of a God that keeps up with all those things, I know he cares for me. So I say to you, Praise the Lord.

 

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