My Heart Shifter
Reflections on God’s Tender-Hearted Love
Praise is sacred.
Have you ever thought about that? Your praise is a sacred act before Almighty God!
I think so often we shrink the thought of praise into a confined space of a praise and worship setting or song. At times I’m sure we have all mistakenly had the idea that the fast songs at church are praise!
Praise can be given to anyone. We give praise to our kids’ friends or someone in whom we are complimenting. Praise to God, however, is sacred. It goes beyond praising someone in creation, to praising the creator.
It isn’t birthed out of a song, but a posture of the heart.
David said it like this, “I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart.”
— Psalm 86:12
Praise is not hype, although it can have emotion! When we praise with ALL of our heart, you will absolutely find emotion involved. Praise is not just given, but it’s offered. Offered to a Holy God.
When we praise God we are honoring God, remembering His works, and expressing gratitude! We are rejoicing in His goodness and we are proclaiming God’s greatness aloud. We recognize His full authority and come under His Lordship! We exalt God higher than what we can see and we magnify Him above all things, especially our struggles!
Our praise to God is sacred because it is for Him and Him alone! He alone is worthy of such praise!
We know intellectually the importance of praise. We also know when we are in the middle of a battle or in the middle of a struggle, we are at a crossroad! Will we exalt our situation or will we praise God in the midst of it? There isn’t one of us that has not felt the intensity of this crossroad!
What I have learned is that God is always above it all but our heart can’t always perceive it. How can our hearts not perceive it if we know it intellectually? It’s usually because of what we have meditated upon. What we have allowed to play out in our mind! We do not have to live in denial. What we are facing is hard, real and sometimes uncertain. It is in these times, what we meditate on determines what comes up and out of our mouth. When we remind ourselves of who God is and what he has done, it shifts us from worry and anxiety into total trust.
“My mouth shall praise You with joyful lips when I remember You upon my bed, and meditate on You in the watches of the night.”
“When we gather together in praise, it is a heart shifter! It’s not hype, it’s sacred praise! For who He is and all He has done! .” (Psalm 63:5-6)