GOING PUBLIC WITH PRAISE Alternate Reading by Marge Melendez

“I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.”  Psalm 122:1 (NLT)

“Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.  Serve the Lord with gladness:  come before his presence with singing.  Know ye that the Lord he is God, it is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise; be thankful unto him, and bless his name.  For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.”  Psalms 100:1-5 (KJ)

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Every one was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done to the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common…Everyday they continued to meet together in the temple courts.  They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, Praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.  And the Lord added to their numbers daily those who were being saved.”  Acts 2:42-47 (NIV)

Praising is a core characteristic of the church; an essential element in its DNA. Wherever the church exists, there will be praise. Praise is an act of worship or acknowledgment by which the virtues or deeds of another are recognized and extolled. (Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)   Praise is an expression of approval or admiration, of gratitude and devotion for blessings received. (The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright (c) 1988.)

The praise of man toward God is the means by which we express our joy to the Lord. We are to praise God both for who He is and for what He does (Ps 150:2). Praising God for who He is, is called adoration; praising Him for what He does is known as thanksgiving. Praise of God may be in song or prayer, individually or collectively, spontaneous or prearranged, originating from the emotions or from the will.

What is the importance of being a person of praise?  Praise is commanded.  The word praise occurs 209 times in all the Psalms; over half of those occurrences in the last 50 psalms.  For examples of these passages refer to Psalms 150 which “commands us to praise God” 

Praise the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.

Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.  

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,

praise him with tambourine and dancing,
praise him with the strings and flute,

praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
Praise the LORD.

The writings of the apostles are filled with prayers and words of praise, worship and thanksgiving.  “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:19-20.  Keep this in mind—that we are commanded to praise God—even when we don’t feel like praising God; for example in the midst of adverse circumstances. Praise is the only appropriate response to the wonder and glory of God.

Sometimes our faces do not reflect our love for God as we sit in Church and one wonders what’s wrong! It’s not that most of us are not well-adjusted and happy; it’s not that we are not excited about God and in love with him; it’s just that we don’t let it show!

Begin to truly praise and worship and thank God, and your life will change. Your heart will open, your load feels lighter, and your countenance brightens.  You will like yourself better; others might even like you better.  Praise changes our perspective, changes our attitude. Praise changes your perspective on things.  What seemed insurmountable appears less overwhelming.  What seemed a problem becomes a challenge.  What seemed a setback becomes a stepping-stone forward.  What seemed incurable now has a cure.

It is said of Martin Luther, the great Protestant Reformer, that whenever he would face a significant problem, he would say, let’s sing a hymn and spite the Devil. He knew the power of praise.  This leads to the final thought on the importance of praise.

Praise is a significant part of our spiritual arsenal against the wiles of the Devil. I believe Satan cannot stay in a room where people are praising and worshipping God with abandon.

Some of us are bothered by the fact that others want to worship differently. We think there is a set way for Christians to praise God. In reality, none of us follow the example of the early believers. Naturally, no one can make you a praise-focused person, but only point out its importance to you. You need to turn to God, focus on his nature and his work, and begin praising him ANew.