A phrase has been following me around for the last few weeks. Not sure where I heard it, but I recently found out that it’s from Psalm 22:3 …God inhabits the praises of His people.
Anyway, I was reading a recent passage in my daily devotional, Jesus Always, by Sarah Young:Tell me your troubles and seek my guidance; then change the subject. Praise me for my greatness and glory, my power and majesty! Thank me for the good things I have done and am doing in your life. You will find me richly present in your praise and thanksgiving.
First, I love that this devotional says we are to tell Jesus our troubles, ask for his help, then…change the subject! So; let it all out, then give it over to God and stop dwelling on it. Great advice!
And then we are instructed to thank God…You will find me richly present in your praise and thanksgiving. And the words came back to me God inhabits the praises of his people. How beautiful is that? But what does it really mean? I mean think about it; We’re often so busy complaining about all of our troubles. In prayer, we are so preoccupied with asking and hoping, pleading and crying… Do you think maybe God gets tired of that every once in awhile? I know, I know… that is a human view of God, and of course, he’s always there for us, and I know he wants to hear the sorrows of our heart, and he comforts us every single time…
But what Joy must it bring him, when we choose to praise instead? In the depths of our pain and our difficulties… when we manage to put it all aside and praise him instead! How much joy, how much delight and encouragement must he feel towards us?
It’s like that magical moment when your sullen, usually complaining teenager surprises you with an appreciative “Thanks Mom!” that just about knocks you over with shock. Or when we see that our kids can look past something negative or difficult to recognize and be happy or grateful for something else. There’s just this sense of relief in your own heart, a sense of happiness that they are happy, and resilient, and able to focus on the positive – you just feel a real sense of rest about it. I think God’s no different.
It’s All About Gratitude
God inhabits the praises of his people. He’s always with us, for sure…but when we are praising God he dwells, he takes up residence in our praise of him. It can truly feel like he’s even closer.
I picture God hearing our prayers every day and sometimes we just recite them; God please help me with… God please heal him…please strengthen her…please change this and fix that… And it’s just this litany of requests.
God’s always there, for sure, and he’s listening to all of our needs, and he loves us… but when we are filled with gratitude, and we start to praise him instead, I just picture this image of God pulling up a chair, you know? It’s like he sits down and gets comfortable as we begin to thank him, and he nods and says uh huh, yeah I did that… You’re so welcome! I’m glad you noticed! It’s because I love you so much. Oh, that? Yep that was me too! Glad you liked that. It was my pleasure!
And I believe the praise that we have for him strengthens us. Praise strengthens our bond with God and with that strengthened God-bond we become stronger! We are strengthened by our own praise of God! How is that possible!? I believe it is because gratitude, praise and thanksgiving build our confidence in God’s love and presence in our lives.
God inhabits our praises. That’s where we most readily find him. If you are searching and wondering why your walk with God has grown cold or stale… Try praise! Meditate on who he is and what he’s done and you will automatically find yourself feeling grateful. It is hard to think of God and everything he is and everything he does, and not feel a compulsion, a drawing towards praise.
We Can Relate
We can often draw parallels between God’s relationship to us and our relationship to our kids. What does it feel like when you get home and the kids are clamoring and saying daddy, mommy… help me with…can you…did you… can I …I need… will you…why can’t I…
Compared to when you walk into a room and your kids (or anyone, really) says to you. Hey, thanks so much for… I was so happy when you…you did such a great job with….that was really a great idea you had… I’m so glad you thought to….I so appreciated when you…It was so nice of you to…I was so relieved that you…
Big difference, right? And, no, of course it’s not the same thing. God is here for us no matter what, in every situation. And he’s bigger than any problem we will ever have, and he absolutely welcomes us to come to him in our need and desperation.
And in our wanting, our needing and our asking…He is always listening.
How To Get Started
But, let’s be honest, if we truly desire to be in relationship with God, we surely must believe there has to be some balance in our communication with Him. It can’t all be so one-sided, and so one-note.
So, what’s a praying Christian to do?
Here are a few suggestions:
– Before you get out of bed in the morning, thank God sincerely for one or two good things in your life. It’s a great way to start your day.
– Whenever you begin to pray, try to make it a habit to thank God first, before making a request. If you can’t think of anything specific, thank him that he is always there and listening when you pray. Recognizing and thanking God for being there, and realizing his presence is really all we need is huge.
– Know that ‘every good and perfect gift comes from above’ James 1:17 so when something good happens -anything at all- try to remember to thank God for it.
– Wherever you are on your spiritual path, thank him for the journey. It doesn’t matter how far you have to go, just recognize that you are going forward, and he is helping you to do so. Gratitude comes naturally when you think this way.
There can and should be praise and thanksgiving sprinkled in amongst all of our prayer requests. And the beauty is, when we do pause our requests to praise and thank him…? We can find our burdens unexpectedly lifted, and our weakness and weariness give way to His strength. And we are often rewarded with that ever-desired peace that passes understanding.
It’s a pretty awesome exchange.
