BACKGROUND
The last five psalms (146-150) are called the "Hallelujah Psalms" because they focus on pure praise of the LORD. The beginning phrase of all of them is "Praise the Lord"! This is the English transliteration of the Hebrew word, halelû-yāh, which is derived from the Hebrew words, hālal, meaning "shine/praise," and yāh, which is a contracted form of Yahweh, the personal (covenant) name of God and most frequent designation for Him in the Hebrew Scripture (5321 times).
Psalm 146
The psalmist vows to praise God for his whole life. He is the only one we can trust in 100% for everything. God's help is contrasted with man's help which is not 100% trustworthy! The psalm mentions many things for which God should be praised: His creation, truth, judgment, provision, healing, protection, and eternal reign!
Psalm 147
This psalm is considered a "post-exilic" psalm because of the phrase "He gathers the 'banished/outcast/expelled/exiles" of Israel (147:2; Nehemiah 1:9).
Many commentators believe this was the psalm Nehemiah read during the celebration and dedication when the people finished rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem (compare 147:2, 12-14 with Nehemiah 12:27-43).
It starts and finishes with an exhortation to praise God who cares for all creation, creatures, and His people!
2023 Update: I just got out of a Life Model Study Group: Learning to Become a Full-Brained Christ-Follower. Then I come to this post. Praise is good for your brain!
I will let you explore the Life Model Works website, and you can try Immanuel Journaling which starts out with a thing called Interactive Gratitude.
REFLECTION
Love this acrostic for praise:
Draw us into focused praise of You, Lord. Amen.
REFLECTION
Love this acrostic for praise:
Publicly
Recounting the
Acts of the
Incomparable
Sovereign of
Eternity
Praising and adoring God
is the noblest part
of the saint's work on earth,
as it will be his chief employ
in heaven.
(Daily Walk, June 30, 2008, p.35)
So why do we not do it constantly? What hinders us from pure praise every day of our lives? As I sit here in prayer this morning, I hear "lack of focus." So, I will go with that.
I must go with that! Since writing that last line, my family has all gotten up, and it has been a flurry of packing for our annual camping trip with two other families. In addition, my computer shock wave player keeps crashing because of unresolved problems between Google and Norton, a barrage of emails has come in begging to be responded to, and I was distracted.
Everything clamors for our attention and keeps our focus off of the God who made it all (including the people who made Google and Norton and invented email and computers).
What is a person to do?
Focus on an ancient God in a 21st-century world takes intentionality. Just like those Olympic athletes that I have been watching this summer (yes, I am completing the December posts in August due to a busy fall coming up). They achieved greatness through constant training and practice. We are in training and practice for heaven, and we need to learn to focus on the God we will be with into eternity!
APPLICATION
How intentional are you to make praise a daily part of your life? Why don't you set some clear and specific "praise" intentions for the coming year? You may not win gold, but you will certainly be blessed beyond measure!
My application for today is to go outside RIGHT now and praise God in the beautiful sunshine (remember I am writing this in August, but we can praise Him on a cold December day by a warm fire too!).
PRAYERI must go with that! Since writing that last line, my family has all gotten up, and it has been a flurry of packing for our annual camping trip with two other families. In addition, my computer shock wave player keeps crashing because of unresolved problems between Google and Norton, a barrage of emails has come in begging to be responded to, and I was distracted.
Everything clamors for our attention and keeps our focus off of the God who made it all (including the people who made Google and Norton and invented email and computers).
What is a person to do?
Focus on an ancient God in a 21st-century world takes intentionality. Just like those Olympic athletes that I have been watching this summer (yes, I am completing the December posts in August due to a busy fall coming up). They achieved greatness through constant training and practice. We are in training and practice for heaven, and we need to learn to focus on the God we will be with into eternity!
APPLICATION
How intentional are you to make praise a daily part of your life? Why don't you set some clear and specific "praise" intentions for the coming year? You may not win gold, but you will certainly be blessed beyond measure!
My application for today is to go outside RIGHT now and praise God in the beautiful sunshine (remember I am writing this in August, but we can praise Him on a cold December day by a warm fire too!).
Draw us into focused praise of You, Lord. Amen.
1 comment:
Dear God, I am grateful today for the deep connection that I had with one of my directees as she went into a memory of your abundant provision for her in the past, and how it helped her deal with her present situation. Thank you that her sharing encouraged my heart and the soul-to-soul connection we had as a result too.
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