3 Ways Praise Changes Us
I glanced back to catch her timid smile. We were driving alone, a rare treat for our oldest, who graciously shares her parents attention with two younger sisters. Her smile was framed by two blushed cheeks. I was using our time together to speak words of encouragement over her. She simultaneously loved and hated the direct attention. But I knew she needed to hear it, even if she pretended to dislike it.
Driving is a sweet time of encouragement between me and the girls. Encouragement is not a natural gift of mine. I’ve intentionally grown as an encourager in every area of my life, especially motherhood. I use driving as a cue for me to spend a few minutes encouraging them before putting on the music. I often think of the things I love about my girls, I just don’t always verbalize them. In the day to day fullness of life my encouragement gets drowned out by tasks and correction.
I find this same pattern in my relationship with God. I think about who God is and what He’s done. I journal about it, thank him for it, but I internalize it more than I declare it. I pray with a long list and limited time. My praise and adoration get drowned out by the urgent needs of the moment.
Psalm 100 begins with:
“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!”
David doesn’t begin by calling us to think or ponder on who God is, he calls us to shout with joy, sing praises, to loudly verbalize who God is. Verbal praise is powerful. It doesn’t shift or change or who God is, but as we declare who he is, we are transformed.
Praising who God is renews our minds.
In Romans 12:2 Paul urges us:
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
We live in a world that shouts lies about who God is. As we remember who our God is and what he has done, we guard our mind and silence the enemy.
Praising who God is reorients our hearts.
I recently tried a new night cream that works well and is affordable. I am singing its praises to my friends. We sing praises on a daily basis, intentionally or not. But often our praises are directed toward temporary things, rather than the only One worthy of our praise. Declaring who God is reorients our hearts to the One who truly satisfies.
Praising who God is refuels our hope.
In verse four of Psalm 100, David says, “Give thanks to Him, bless His name.” There are over 900 names of God in the Bible - each one representing a characteristic or work done.
To bless His name is to sing praises about His character, His attributes, about why He is worthy. When we praise God for who He is, it stirs awe, wonder and hope in our hearts. We live in a broken world. We face discouragement and despair daily. Blessing God’s Name, declaring his goodness, lifts our eyes off our brokenness to our rock of hope.
The most repeated command in the Bible might surprise you. Multiple times, in various forms, we are instructed to praise God, to thank Him or esteem Him.
God is the only one worthy of our praise and this command isn’t for his benefit, truthfully, he doesn’t need it. This directive is for our benefit. John Piper says, “God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him.” Praise and thanksgiving are a gift from God for our good, to satisfy us and fill us with joy. But praise and thanksgiving isn’t our default, negativity and complaining are. If we want the declaration of our lives and lips to be that of only Jesus, we must intentionally cultivate a heart and mind of praise and thanksgiving.
Here are a few reflection questions to help us ponder what we are praising:
Does your praise of God get crowded out in the day to day distractions?
How can you cue yourself to intentionally spend time daily praising God verbally?
Are you singing the praises of something louder than you are proclaiming the praises of God?
Grace and Peace,
Karen