Mensa Otabil - Declare the Lord's Praises
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Welcome to day number 34 of our 40 days of power. We have six more days to go. We continue to praise the Lord and thank Him for what He has done for us through the Spirit as we waited on Him. We are discussing declaring the praises of the Lord. Psalm 146, verses 1 and 2: «Praise the Lord; praise the Lord, O my soul! While I live, I will praise the Lord; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.» Most of us are familiar with the phrase «Hallelujah,» which simply means «Praise the Lord.»
In Hebrew, it comes from two words: «hallel» and «Yah.» «Hallel» means to make an exclamation of admiration, and «Yah,» of course, refers to God. So, when the Bible says to praise the Lord, it means to boast in the Lord, and it is done in a loud, expressive way. It’s like seeing something wonderful in your life and saying, «Wow, that’s a halal!» We are called to praise the Lord and to exclaim His goodness because of what He has done for us. When the psalmist calls us to praise the Lord, he doesn’t want us to say it softly, easily, or casually. He wants us to be enthusiastic about worshiping God and declaring His goodness. It should be done in a vibrant, boastful way.
When we look through this psalm, we see that God can be praised in two main ways expressed in the song. This doesn’t mean these are the only ways we can praise God, but this psalm shows us two ways. First, we can declare His praise. When we declare His praise, we use words and the strength of our voice to express our admiration for God. We can do it in poetry or prose, but we choose our words carefully and express them thoughtfully. In the psalms, you will find that the psalmists took the time to express their worship of God. When you love someone or something—a flower, a mountain, or another person—and you’re writing about them, you take your time to choose your words and express your feelings properly. That’s how God wants us to praise Him. He doesn’t want us to be mechanical and say, «Oh, I praise You, I praise You, I praise You.» He wants us to choose the words we use to praise Him.
So, when we declare the praise of God, it’s important to choose our words well; they should be meaningful to us, expressing our experience with God, showing Him that we pay attention to praising Him. Declare His praise; choose your words wisely. Secondly, we can sing His praises. Singing His praises is when we use melody, rhythm, and lyrics to make a joyful sound to the Lord. In the Old Testament, the psalmists paid attention to the structure of the music, the cadences, and how they were sung. These days, not all of us are composers; people compose the songs, and we sing them. So when you are singing a song, please pay attention. First, sing it well and sing it to the praise of God.
Today, let us declare His praise and let us sing His praise. The Lord has done great things for us, and we are grateful to Him for all that He has done for us. So, why don’t we share a word of prayer? Say with me, «Heavenly Father, I praise You for who You are. You are the King of the universe, the owner and possessor of all things. There is none like You. You are my Lord and my God, and I thank You in Jesus' name. Amen.» Learn to declare His praise and learn to sing His praise; there is much praising we are going to do in this season. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.