I will praise God's name in
song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the LORD more than an
ox, more than a bull with its horns
and hoofs. —Psalm 69:30-31
I heard two girls were complaining because their
father died at fifty; they said God was unfair. Their mother put her arms around
the two girls and said: “I want you to know that my own Dad died before I was
ten. And I praise God for every remembrance of Him. You should thank God for the
time that God gave you to have your father.” That is the attitude of a godly,
Spirit-filled person who really thanks God for everything and gives a testimony
of His faithfulness, even in difficult times.
Praise makes a more joyful life. Sometimes you
don’t feel like praising God, but of course, you have reasons to praise Him,
regardless of how you feel. And sometimes, when things don’t go the way you
want them to, you have to remember they always go the way the Master wants them
to. You are simply His servant, and praising your Master will lift you up and
fill you with joy.
Praise enhances our human relationships. When we
gather together to praise God, we fill each other with sounds of praise, and it
encourages us. We draw closer and closer to God, but also to each other.
God has created us to be people of praise. Our
worship services, our homes, our attitudes, and all our gatherings should be
places of praise.