365 Days of Praise

As we have studied, there are times when God announces, “This is who I am. This is my name.” Such is the case in Isaiah 42:8 when God announced,

I am the LORD, that is My name  

He continues in the same breath, explaining what it means that His name is LORD. He states He will not give His glory to another. In other words, we are to praise Him and Him alone. His announcement should cause us to think about our lives and if we are giving our praise to anything or anyone besides Him? In other words, are we making anything or anyone besides God the priority of our lives?” If we are, then we must bow before the LORD in repentance and profess Him as LORD. We must realign our lives so they are a praise to Him.

Heavenly Father, Lord God Almighty, You alone are LORD. Forgive us for putting anything or anyone before You. We bow in humble reverence and praise.

Do you ever feel like the world, your flesh or the devil are bearing down on you and you need a rallying point where you can find victory over your fallen nature and temptation? Moses discovered that the Lord was his rallying point. When he held high the BANNER OF THE LORD, the Israelites were victorious over their enemies. They fought in God’s name and strength, not their own. The same holds true for us.  The LORD IS OUR BANNER. When we lift His name high in prayer and look to Him for strength, we find victory over our sinful nature and the enemy. The next time temptation or your old nature starts to get the best of you, look to the heavens. Lift high the LORD’s name: Victorious Warrior, Prince of Peace. Faithful. Guardian of Your Soul.  Build an altar of praise to the Lord as Moses did.

Moses built an altar and named it ‘The Lord is My Banner,’ Exodus 17:15.

Return to the altar of praise throughout the day and give God praise.

LORD, we praise You and lift high the BANNER of YOUR NAME – victorious One. 

With the night sky as a backdrop, many July 4th watchers “ooh” and “awe” at fireworks. I can’t help but grin at how easily amused we are. Certainly, our Heavenly Father who created the night backdrop must smile. I wonder if Jesus ever leans over and says, “Aren’t they going to be blown away when they see the Light display of Us?” Who will see the glorious display of LIGHTS and GLORY emanating from heaven’s throne room? Those who have placed their faith in the KING of the NATIONS.  Yes, all people throughout the world who have responded “yes” to Jesus’s gift of salvation will be at the Heavenly display of LIGHTS. How can we be certain that Jesus is the Savior of not only the Jews but of all the nations? Jesus himself said He is.

All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age, Matthew 28:16-20,   

As you think about the fireworks on July 4, think beyond them to the One who made the night sky and who is King of the Nations, the light of the world.

Heavenly Father, we smile in anticipation of the display of GLORY emanating from YOU, KING of the NATIONS. Stir our hearts to live for Your pleasure and sharing You with others throughout the world. 

Have you ever felt “tied up” spiritually, physically, or emotionally? Like you couldn’t get free and to a place in your life you desired?  Or, are you concerned for a loved one who is in physical, emotional, or spiritual bondage?  If so, call on the name of the Lord on the basis of Psalm 116:16 which says,

O Lord, surely I am Your servant, …You have LOOSED MY BONDS. 

This verse (and the whole chapter) reminds us that when we call on the name of the Lord, He can do what no one else can do. He has already loosed us from the bonds of death and given us eternal freedom. So why wouldn’t the Lord desire for us to be free from anything that binds us on earth? “Unbind him and let him go,” Jesus directed those who watched Him raise Lazarus from the dead. If there is an area where you’re seeking freedom in your life so you can run the race God has set before you (Ephesians 2:10), then know the Lord is on your side and wants to help you. Read Psalm 116. Notice how many times the psalmist tells us what he did in order to be free. Will you call on the name of the Lord, knowing that His name indicates His full power and provision for you.

Lord, You are the great and mighty God who LOOSENS BONDS. We praise You for the bonds of death from which You’ve set us free. We call on You now to loosen emotional, spiritual, or physical bonds that hinder us from running the race You’ve set before us. We call on You trusting in Your all powerful name. 

So we get that our body needs water. But, what about our spirit? According to Jesus it needs spiritual water: Living Water, the Holy Spirit.

If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke of the SPIRIT, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the SPIRIT was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.  John 7:38

Oh my goodness. This is so exciting and such an important principle. We must not miss it. Just as our body thirsts, so does our spirit. Unhappy? Feeling grumpy? Resentment making your face look dry as a prune? You could be thirsting spiritually. Yes! Go to your Heavenly Father. Tell Him, “I thirst. I feel spiritually dry.” Ask Him to refresh you. Hold your heart up wide and ask Him to fill it to overflowing with His glorious, refreshing, life giving Spirit. Oh, sweet friends, nothing in God’s Word was written in vain. When Ephesians 5:18 tells us to be filled with the Spirit, it’s not joshing around. It’s a vital command that we be filled and keep on being filled with the Spirit. So yes, when your mouth is dry, reach for a glass of water. When your spirit is dry, reach for your Lord. This is a Biblical principle that is Plain. Simple. Truth. Are you plump in the spirit or dry as a prune?

Sweet Jesus, thank You for coming from heaven to speak truth into our lives. Thank You for giving us Your Spirit,  LIVING WATER, that cleanses and refreshes us so we are filled and energized to serve You. We love You, Lord. 

Do you ever wish that someone would listen to you? You may have even asked someone with whom you were talking, “Are you listening to me?” Perhaps they said yes, but you wondered if they really heard what was on your heart.  We don’t have to wonder if God listens to us and understands our heart. He does.  Jeremiah 29:12 says that if we pray, He’ll LISTEN.

Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will LISTEN to you.  

Is that not cool? Whoohoo! Think on that. Ponder God’s words! Say them out loud. Yes, there’s something about forming the words with your lips and voicing them that helps them take hold.  “When I call on God and go to Him and pray to Him, He listens to me.” Yes! Yes, yes, yes!  The God of the universe, the God of creation will listen to you if you go to Him and pray to Him. I think there is something significant that we may miss in our casual Christian culture. When He says, “come and pray to Me” that implies to me that there is a turning from what we are doing and turning to God. It’s the “come to Me” part. For instance, people sought out Jesus. They went to Him to listen to Him or to be healed. The beautiful thing is, because God is Spirit, we don’t have to get in our car and drive some place to find God. But I do feel there is an implied intentionality in our addressing Him. It may be in the course of our day that a question arises in our heart and instead of only mulling it over in our head or texting someone to ask their opinion, we turn to God. We ask Him what we should do. There’s so much to discuss on this topic, but the bottom line is believers have the most amazing privilege and opportunity to live beyond ourselves. We have the Almighty God saying He will listen to us, and friend, that is an amazing opportunity. Are you taking advantage of it? Do you begin your day seeking His agenda for you? Do you linger in His presence to listen to how He directs you? Do you turn to Him throughout the day and seek His guidance? Do you act on how His Spirit prompts you? The ball’s in your court. His offer stands.

Heavenly Father, that You would offer the opportunity for us to come to You and You will will LISTEN is such a beautiful promise that it overwhelms my mind. You are so precious. Thank You, Lord.

PS: I have many resources to help you regarding prayer. 

Do you ever feel like you’re eaten up with sin? Or can you look back to a time when you succumbed to temptation and satan “chewed you up and spit you out”? If so, no doubt you praise Christ for being victor over the devil who prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8) Yes, satan is the great pretender. He prowls like a roaring lion but he isn’t a lion. He mimics everything about Christ, insanely jealous that Christ is Lord, not him.  The true LION? The genuine, real deal LION? Jesus is, as  Revelation 5:5 explains.

behold, the LION that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals.

Jesus’s title, Lion of Judah, is traced to Genesis 49:9 when Jacob blessed his son, Judah, and referred to him as “young lion.” Christ is traced to this noble tribe of Israel.  Rather than being a “young lion,” however, or a fictional lion king movie character, Christ’s title designates Jesus as the the true Lion King, the noblest and most powerful One. As Revelation 5:5 states, Christ has overcomes all, even death. He’s our LION KING. Give praise to Him and turn to Him when satan nips at your heels.

Lord Jesus Christ, LION OF JUDAH, we worship You! Thank You for all You have done to defeat satan and secure our salvation. Move in us increasingly so we are aware of Your presence and power. 

“You can’t see God, so how do you know He’s there?” people sometimes ask. I think one of the best responses is found in Romans 1:19-20.

because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His INVISIBLE attributes, His eternal power, and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

In other words, look at the glory of the heavens. Look at the glory of the flowers, trees, animals, oceans. Look at the wonder of the human body. God may be invisible, but His handiwork is clearly visible.  Our privilege and calling is give credit where credit is due for the creation, eternal power, and divine nature that is displayed in our world, universe, human body, air we breath. Join me in the following chorus of praise.

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

King eternal, immortal, INVISIBLE God, we praise You and thank You for the glory of Your creation and for making Yourself clearly seen through Your handiwork. 

Learn more about the Divine Nature in one of my favorite  studies!