December 16 2011

Praise & Adoration
 
Reading: I Chronicles 29:10-13, 10 David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. 11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. 12 Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. 13 Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.

It seems like this is one area in which we don’t feel comfortable and/or we don’t know how to praise and adore God. There we don’t do it. I struggled for years with this, thinking that praising God was simply saying, “Thank you”. But, it is so much more than that. True praise and adoration is exactly what David does in this passage. If you look at what he says to God in verse 11, don’t you think God already knows these things about Himself? So, why would praise and adoration be important then? Jesus himself, in teaching us to pray, started off with praise and adoration, “Hallowed be Your name... your kingdom come…. your will be done.” When God knows what we are thinking and He knows everything that is in our heart, why would we have to verbally praise and adore Him? Romans 10:11 says, “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” Again, why is this important if He already knows our heart and our thoughts?

Men, it is no different than offering a sacrifice or our money to Him… He doesn’t need it. If you do not already practice praising and adoring God, you should try it. You will be amazed at what it will do for you when you verbally acknowledge God, His greatness, His truth, His love, His faithfulness, etc. and you will begin to realize how much He truly means to you.

Take some time right now and write out praise and adoration toward God and then speak it to Him. Try to include that throughout your day.
End of the Day Review
  
Were you able to take time throughout your day and praise and adore God?

How did you go about praising Him?
 
 What impact did that make on your day?