Our Measure of Praise

I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:2 (New King James Version)

I was quite taken back yesterday at something the Lord brought to my attention. For the past three years God has been allowing me to take in the truth that He welcomes my honesty. He desires truth in the inward parts which means I am safe to confide to Him how I am really feeling and what I am really thinking. It has been a long time in coming but I have finally learned to cry on His shoulder as I express pain, disappointment, fear, and heartache. The ability to explore the depths of emotions with Him has been very freeing and healing. All along I have sited David as my example of one who could readily open his heart to God. Seeing this side of his prayer life served as a key to unlock the door of my own heart.

Once I was fully on the journey of truthfulness with God, He opened my eyes to something that astounded me. He drew my attention to David’s enthusiastic praise life! I counted up the verses in the Psalms that use the words cried and tears, and discovered there are a couple dozen. But I was unprepared to find that there are 175 verses that include the word praise. While David certainly brought honest hurting emotions to God, his outbursts of praise far outnumbered them! This truth hit home with me and convicted me greatly. God got the message across to me loud and clear.

He was letting me know my praise to Him should far outweigh and outnumber my times of pouring my heart out to Him. He was not saying to stop the one, but rather to increase the other! He reminded me that He inhabits the praises of His people. Yes, He is a God of comfort but He is also a God who delights in praise. While letting Him know the deepest parts of myself is necessary and refreshing, speaking praise to Him is energizing!

Now I can take these facts in and believe them to be true. But real change does not take place until I begin to implement them into my life. Yesterday was the day I put it all to the test. Throughout the day I expressed praise to Him for as many things as I could think of and I found that the more I spoke the more my spirit came alive in me! It redirected my focus on to God, it brought out a boldness, it increased my confidence in Him, it brought things into the right perspective, and it brought on a joy that was indescribable. I have no doubt that David’s praise ratio is meant for us today. May the praise flow from our mouths in abundance!

Father, Your ears have been open to my heartaches and I thank You for that. May I now fill those same ears with the sound of praise from a grateful heart! I praise You!!!!! Amen.