how great Thou art

Friday April 28th- How great Thou art! - Psalm 145

1:00 PM


Friday April 28th - How great Thou Art! Psalm 145
Psalm 145, Exodus 15:18

When I wake up in the morning I am thankful that His mercies are new and great is His faithfulness.  This psalm tells us of His goodness and gives us reasons to worship and praise Him.  How great is our God!

He is gracious and merciful  

The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness. Psalms 103:8

The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in due time. You open Your hands and satisfy the desire of every living thing. Psalms 145:15-16  

He is righteous

Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yes, our God is compassionate. Psalms 116:5

Righteous are You, O LORD, and upright are Your judgments.     You have commanded Your testimonies in righteousness and exceeding faithfulness. Psalms 119:137-138

His kingdom is everlasting and endures forever

Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. 1 Timothy 1:17

Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! Revelation 15:3

He is righteous in all His ways

For the LORD our God is righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done Daniel 9:14

He is near to all who call upon Him in truth

For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is the LORD our God whenever we call on Him? Deuteronomy 4:7

He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him

Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He will do it. Psalms 37:4-5

He keeps all who love Him

Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name.  “He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.  “With a long life I will satisfy him and let him see My salvation.” Psalms 91:14-16

One generation shall praise Thy works to another and shall declare Thy mighty acts.

Posterity will serve Him; it will be told of the Lord to the coming generation.  They will come and will declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, that He has performed it. Psalms 22:30-31

Matthew Henry says it so well.  Those who, under troubles and temptations, abound in fervent prayer, shall in due season abound in grateful praise, which is the true language of holy joy. Especially we should speak of God’s wondrous work of redemption, while we declare his greatness. For no deliverance of the Israelites, nor the punishment of sinners, so clearly proclaims the justice of God, as the cross of Christ exhibits it to the enlightened mind. It may be truly said of our Lord Jesus Christ, that his words are words of goodness and grace; his works are works of goodness and grace. He is full of compassion; hence he came into the world to save sinners. When on earth, he showed his compassion both to the bodies and souls of men, by healing the one, and making wise the other. He is of great mercy, a merciful High Priest, through whom God is merciful to sinners. Many children of God, who have been ready to fall into sin, to fall into despair, have tasted his goodness in preventing their falls, or recovering them speedily by his graces and comforts. And with respect to all that are heavy laden under the burden of sin, if they come to Christ by faith, he will ease them, he will raise them. He is very ready to hear and answer the prayers of his people.  May we then love his name, and walk in his ways, while we desire that all flesh should bless his holy name for ever and ever. 

I know for me that I love to tell others what He is doing in my life.  How He has healed my broken heart, how He has provided for me in all my needs.  How He strengthens me when I cannot possibly do it on my own.  How His peace that passes all understanding flows through me.  In reflecting what He has done in my life shows me how to pray for others that are experiencing the same things that I have been through.

Do you know Him?

What is He doing in your life?

Do you keep it to yourself or are you sharing with others?

Father, we give you all the honor, glory and praise.  Every day we will bless You and praise Your name forever.  You have raised us up when we are bowed down.  You sustain us when we fall.  You are righteous in all Your ways and kind in all Your deeds.  Lord, You are good to all and Your mercies are over all Your works.  Your kingdom lasts forever.   You have done mighty acts in our lives and let us not keep it to ourselves. That our mouths will speak the praise of You Lord.  For You are worthy!  Amen!

 Lyn






1 John 3:1

All Your Works Will Praise You - Psalm 145

9:30 PM


Please read: Psalm 145

This Psalm was a very special Psalm to King David and I am sure that it is also the favorite of many of us who have received His unmerited Grace and Favor!  It is such a privilege to offer it to God, as our own Psalm of Praise and Thanksgiving!!   

“I will exalt You, my God, O King, And [with gratitude and submissive wonder] I will bless Your name forever and ever.” (vs. 1)

As I meditate on the first day I surrendered my life to Jesus (35 years ago), I am in awe of ALL the love and care He has poured over my life, and the lives of my loved ones! He took me by the hand and through His Holy Spirit changed and transformed that lost self-sufficient young woman into a child of God (1 John 3:1)!  


  “8 The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and abounding in loving kindness. 9 The Lord is good to all, And His tender mercies are over all His works [the entirety of things created]. ” (Vs. 8-9)
“It may be truly said of our Lord Jesus Christ, that his words are words of goodness and grace; his works are works of goodness and grace. He is full of compassion; hence he came into the world to save sinners. When on earth, he showed his compassion both to the bodies and souls of men, by healing the one, and making wise the other. He is of great mercy, a merciful High Priest, through whom God is merciful to sinners. “(M. Henry)

Have these 35 years of walking the Christian walk, been easy? No, they haven’t. But, I can testify that He has always been with me through His transforming Work... just as He promised in His Word. (Hebrews 13:5, John 16:33)

So join me as we meditate in our hearts how blessed we are to be part of His Family!

“10 All Your works shall give thanks to You and praise You, O Lord, And Your godly ones will bless You.11 They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom And talk of Your power, 12 To make known to the sons of men Your mighty acts And the glorious majesty of Your kingdom.” (Vs. 10-12)

Nothing can separate us from His love: through the good times and through the storms… even when our faith may fail; He will remain Faithful (Ro. 8:38-39)


“14 The Lord upholds all those [of His own] who fall, And raises up all those who are bowed down.”
His eyes are fixed on the broken-hearted, on those who are carrying a heavy load of sin; of bitterness; of sadness; of health issues… whatever it may be, for He is Able and Willing to lift it up from you: Just come and surrender it all to Him! (Matt. 11:28-30)

“And with respect to all that are heavy laden under the burden of sin, if they come to Christ by faith, he will ease them, he will raise them. He is very ready to hear and answer the prayers of his people. He is present everywhere; but in a special way he is nigh to them, as he is not to others. He is in their hearts, and dwells there by faith, and they dwell in him. He is nigh to those that call upon him, to help them in all times of need. He will be nigh to them, that they may have what they ask, and find what they seek, if they call upon him in truth and sincerity. And having taught men to love his name and holy ways, he will save them from the destruction of the wicked. May we then love his name, and walk in his ways, while we desire that all flesh should bless his holy name for ever and ever.” (M. Henry)

Yes, we should witness to those who are still astray and continually pray for them until that day, when we will all be in His Glorious Presence!  Till then, let us declare with gratefulness that He is Worthy of ALL our Love and Praise:

“My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever!!” (Vs. 21- Emphasis mine)

Blessings,

Mari



1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

The Power in Praise {Psalm 145}

12:00 AM

~ Psalm 145

Praise means “to commend, to applaud or magnify.” For the believer, our praise to God is an expression of our worship, lifting-up and glorifying the Lord. But I've recently discovered it's so much more than that! And I cannot wait to share all I've discovered!



I will exalt You, my God, O King, and [with gratitude and submissive wonder] I will bless Your name forever and ever.- Psalm 145:1 

Praise and thanksgiving go hand and hand in our conversation with The Lord, though each are very different, and knowing this difference can help us to experience the Lord in a more significant way.

A few weeks ago I wrote on giving thanks and described my prayer sandwich I discovered in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. (You can read all about it here)
  In Hebrews 13:15, the writer encourages us to "offer up a sacrifice of praise" and somehow I've always looked upon that verse as though I was doing The Lord a favor by taking a moment to praise Him. It seems rather silly just writing that, but that's how I interpreted that verse in my mind.

Barnes explains it this way:
 The sacrifice of praise - For all the mercies of redemption. The Jews, says Rosenmuller (Alte u. neue Morgenland, in loc.), had a species of offerings which they called "peace-offerings, or friendship-offerings." They were designed not to produce peace or friendship with God, but to preserve it. Burnt-offerings, sin-offerings, and trespass-offerings, were all on account of transgression, and were designed to remove transgression. But in their peace-offerings, the offerer was regarded as one who stood in the relation of a friend with God, and the oblation was a sign of thankful acknowledgment for favors received. (emphasis mine)

Every day I will bless You and lovingly praise You;
Yes, [with awe-inspired reverence] I will praise Your name forever and ever. 
Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,And His greatness is [so vast and profound as to be] unsearchable [incomprehensible to man].-Psalm 145:2-3

When we praise the Lord, we praise Him for who He is (His attributes) and what He’s done. For example, we can praise Him for redeeming us through His death on the cross, for His resurrection from the dead, and for ascending to heaven. We can praise Him for He is now seated at the right hand of the Father. 

To thank the Lord is to thank Him for the things that He has personally done for us, or provided. Thanksgiving takes on a more personal note. 

I will give thanks to you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths from the realm of the dead. -Psalm 86:12-13 

Can you see the difference?

Rejoice always
Unceasingly pray,
 In everything give thanks; 
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 

Here is why our petition need to be wrapped around Praise and Thanksgiving!

A sample prayer following 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:

Lord, I praise You for who You are and for what You’ve done. You are Omnipotent- Almighty God! All things are possible for You! You are Omniscient (all knowing); absolutely nothing takes you by surprise! You look carefully after each and every little detail and nothing escapes Your notice! You have proven Yourself over and over to me and I know I can once again trust you with this small matter. Lord God, I know You hear my pleas; You know the longings my heart; therefore I'll will set this here once more before You and thank You once more for lovingly listening to my impassioned plea. Father, I know You have acted on my behalf in this matter before, and You can be trusted to do it again, therefore I will give You thanks and wait on Your perfect timing to act once more! Amen.

By praising in this way, we gain God's perspective on the situation, and we see the Lord for who He really is. We speak truth to our anxious heart and embolden our hearts once more with faith. We take our eyes off ourselves, and look away unto Jesus who is the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2) and we gain the strength and confidence, knowing that our prayer has been heard and He will act.

I used to be one who sought to get straight to the point. Simply seeking to give Him my list of needs, but there aren't adequate words to explain how just the three commands in 1Thessalonians 5:16-18 have revolutionized my prayers and my walk with Him.

I want to encourage you to begin speaking truth to your heart wrapping your petition with praise and thanksgiving and see if it will make all the difference in your walk as well.

Blessings,
Sue