For those who think that worshipping God is a passive activity, try reading Psalm 34. This is a very active passage of scripture. Take a look at the first few verses of this passage with me. I will capitalize all of the action verbs that are ours to do as they appear in the scripture.
Psalms 34 I will BLESS the Lord at all times. His PRAISE shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its BOAST in the Lord. The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, MAGNIFY the Lord with me and let us EXALT His name together. I SOUGHT the Lord and He heard me and delivered me from all my fears.
In these four verses we are given insight as to how we can receive deliverance from ALL of our fears. First we are told to Bless and Praise the Lord with our mouth at all times. Paul also told Christians to REJOICE in the Lord always in Philippians 4:4. That's not difficult to do when things are going pretty good, but it's a different story when you hit a bump in the road. The key here is to give God honor and praise continually so that it becomes a part of our daily life, just like getting dressed or brushing our teeth is part of our daily routine. The discipline of praising God becomes a part of who we are and becomes a shield of protection to guard our hearts when difficult situations arise. God really is good all the time, but we have to continually remind ourselves of His goodness so that when trouble comes we are not overwhelmed by it.
Next, the psalmist says that his soul will BOAST in the Lord. The word boasts here means to SHINE. That's why the next sentence says the "humble will hear of it and be glad." The only way a lost and dying world will see the goodness of God is if WE SHINE God's light for them to see. Boasting of God's faithfulness and steadfast love in our lives reveals His love to others. The more we humble ourselves and submit ourselves to living God's way, the more of His light they will see in and through us.
The next sentence tells us to magnify the Lord and exalt His Name, together. Here we are being directed to come together as believers and EXALT and MAGNIFY the name of the Lord. Exalt means to lift up and magnify means to make bigger. Isaiah 55:9 says that God's ways are HIGHER than our ways. No matter how big a problem is Jesus is bigger. No matter how difficult a situation seems Jesus has a solution if we will settle down and listen for His answer. We have to on purpose fix our eyes on Jesus and seek His vision for our situation.
The last action verb in this passage is the word SOUGHT, which means to seek. It isn't until we turn our hearts to God that He brings deliverance to us. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says that if God's people would turn from their ways and seek His face, THEN He would hear them and heal their land. God loves us so much that He allows us the right to choose life or death, blessings or curses (Deut 30:19). When we choose to follow God's ways and seek His Kingdom first (Matthew 6:33) then He opens the windows of heaven to shower His blessings of Peace in our lives.
Clearly, we have a part in being delivered and staying delivered. God was active in our deliverance; He GAVE His one and only Son to die so that we could LIVE (John 3:16)! Perhaps if we were more active in our daily worship of God we would realize more of His actions in our daily lives! Every day we should BLESS and PRAISE the Lord for His goodness in our lives; we should BOAST of God's unfailing love for us; we should MAGNIFY and EXALT Him over all of our circumstances; and we should SEEK Him FIRST in every area of our life. God's word gives us the blueprint to follow for a healthy, happy, life. When we choose His ways, we have life abundantly. When we fall short, He is faithful to forgive us when we repent, confess our sin and ask His forgiveness. He wants us to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength because that's the way He loves us.
Prayer: Dear Lord thank You for giving me the Bible to have as a blueprint to build my life upon. I gladly boast of You of all that You have done for me. You are King of kings and Lord of lords. You hold the universe in the palm of Your hand You hold me there too. I praise you for Your goodness and I magnify Your name over all of my life. Lord where I have not sought your ways, I ask You to forgive me. Holy Spirit give me ears to hear Your Wisdom, eyes to see your vision, and faith to trust You always. In Jesus Name, AMEN
Cinde Lucas is an ordinary person, who happens to LOVE to encourage and motivate people! She has a passion to share the Love of God with people and to let them know that God is GOOD and He has an AWESOME plan for their lives! Cinde truly desires to lead people into a closer relationship with God through music; her prayer is that the ministry we share will uplift and encourage people to be all that God created them to be. VisitOverflow Ministries at www.CindeLucas.com.
Original publication date: November 21, 2009