Play Me a Sad Song?

There’s a theory that we can get past negative emotions only by giving vent to them.  There is a some truth in that. Bottling up rage or suppressing grief, for example, can take a toll on our bodies and become a toxic brew of twisted thoughts in our brain!  But, playing a sad song continually, whining and complaining, is not helpful, either.  We strengthen those emotions when we rehearse them, asking everyone around us to sooth us in our disappointment, or to join us in our bitterness.  The Word teaches us to deal honestly with all of our emotions. And, then we taught to go beyond Self and to offer ourselves in submission to God, to give forgiveness readily, to invite the Spirit to work with us right where we are.  Best of all, we are told to intentionally offer praise to God!  The act of praising Him creates beautiful background music for your life. Constant complaining will only deepen the sense of futility.  Here’s the directive- "With Jesus' help, let us continually offer our sacrifice of praise to God by proclaiming the glory of his name." (Hebrews 13:15, NLT)

Take care that ‘’praise” is not confused with empty rhetoric.  Does your 'praise' ever sound suspiciously like swearing in disguise?  I hear Christians in terrible situations mouth words like  "Praise the Lord," and know that they are fixing a fig leaf in place that is a thin cover over their impulse to curse the situation! But, if that same person steps back after shakes off the pain, choosing to offer sincere thanks to God for being present in the moment,  sweet worship can emerge from the worst sorrow, pain, or disappointment. he is learning to give God proper praise. We can always praise Him for who He is, for His enduring mercy and unending love.

Why change the soundtrack of life? There are practical and powerful reasons for living with a sacrifice of praise constantly on our lips.

·         When we sincerely praise, we destroy the Enemy's ability to skew our point of view and we gain God's perspective on life. What seems like a mountain to us is but a molehill to Him. What seems to be a dead-end is really a door to "immeasurably more than all we ask or  imagine,"  (Ephesians 3:20, NIV) When we sincerely praise, we look away from our 'dis-ease' to His wholeness. The fact that we are uncomfortable in a situation is eclipsed by His sovereign control of our life when we worship.

·         When we sincerely praise, we release Divine Power into our lives. Praise is the protocol for entering into God's holy Presence. Psalm 100:4, (NLT) says, "Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name." If you were invited to the White House to meet the President personally, the office of Protocol would brief you about how to greet the President, what to wear, where you would sit, and when you should stand. There is an accepted way of doing these things that preserves the dignity of the high office. God asks us to come to Him with thanksgiving on our lips and praise filling our hearts. It honors Him and lifts us up, too!

'But,' you might be saying, 'what if I just don't feel any sense of praise?' Then, offer a sacrifice of praise! No, you don't have to thank Him for the situation you find yourself in. But you can thank Him that He is greater than that situation, that He knew what was coming your way and has prepared just what you need for this day, that He has gifted you with an eternal inheritance in Christ Jesus that your problems cannot steal away!

Choose to praise!  Enter willingly and gladly into worship. Then, watch His glory flow into your situation.

"Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I’ll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God; I’ll let loose with your praise.
Going through the motions doesn’t please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you.
I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered.
Heart-shattered lives ready for love don’t for a moment escape God’s notice." (Psalm 51:14-18, The Message)

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I Will Praise Him

When I saw the cleansing fountain,

Open wide for all my sin,

I obeyed the Spirit's wooing

When He said,  “Wilt thou be clean?”

Tho' the way seemed straight and narrow,

All I claimed was swept away.

My ambitions plans and wishes

At my feet in ashes lay.

Then God's fire upon the altar

Of my heart was set aflame!

I shall never cease to praise Him,

“Glory, glory to His name!”

I will praise Him! I will praise Him!

Praise the Lamb for sinners slain.

Give Him glory, all ye people,

For His blood can wash away each stain.

Margaret Jenkins Harris

Public Domain