Mensa Otabil - Continual Praise
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Well, it’s been a glorious week. God has visited us in tremendous ways. We ended 40 days of power this week, and we started greater works. There’s so much to be thankful for and to praise the Lord for, and that’s why this week has been just thanksgiving and praise to the Lord. We end with Psalm 34, verses 1 and 2: «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.» I’ll bless the Lord at all times. We’ve had that Psalm many times in our lives.There are four things that we notice from this Psalm.
First, «I’ll bless the Lord at all times"-in the morning and in the evening. We praise Him when we wake up, and we praise Him when we go to sleep. We praise Him when we start something and when we finish it, at all times. You know, many times we praise God, bless the Lord, worship Him, or pray about something when we need it, and then when we get it, we forget to thank the Lord. We bless the Lord and say, «Lord, I thank You for a new day,» but when we’re going to sleep, we forget to bless Him. The Psalmist says, «I’ll bless the Lord at all times.» At all times-in good times and in bad, on a mountain and in a valley-wherever I am, my soul will bless the Lord.
The second thing he says is, «His praise shall continually be in my mouth.» I’ll praise the Lord continually. I’m not going to stop praising God because there is a roadblock. I’m not going to stop praising God when things are good, and then when there is a little difficulty, I stop praising Him. He says, «His praise shall continually be in my mouth.» You have to allow the praise of the Lord to be in your mouth continually, no matter what happens-continuously praising God. You can’t go through 40 days of power and all that God has done and suddenly be temperamental in your praise. No, we praise the Lord continually. He’s a victorious God, a mighty God, and our Father. He’s working on our behalf, so we praise Him continually.
The third thing the Psalmist says is, «I will make my boast in the Lord; my soul shall make its boast in the Lord.» The Lord is our pride; the Lord is our boast. In ourselves, we are nothing, but in Christ, we are everything. We are great and mighty. He is our confidence. In Him, we are strong; in Him, we can face a thousand enemies. In Him, we can do all things. In Him, we are well able. He makes all things possible for us. All things are possible to those who believe. Christ is our boast; God is our boast. We don’t boast in ourselves, no matter what our pedigree is or what our achievements are. We put them all aside, like the great Apostle Paul, and just boast in the Lord, brag about God, rejoice in Him, and thank Him for all that He has done for us.
So remember, if you’re going to boast, boast in the Lord. Don’t boast in how well you’re dressed or how handsome or beautiful you look. Don’t boast in your vehicle or your house or even your children-just boast in the Lord for everything you do. Remember, the Lord is the one behind it. He’s the one giving you everything. Don’t just celebrate the things and forget the giver of the things. Our soul boasts in the Lord. If people praise you, remember to return the praise to God. You may not say it with your mouth, but in your heart, when people say you’ve done well, remember to say in your heart, «Lord, You have done well.» If people say, «Oh, you are wonderful,» remember to say, «Lord, You are wonderful.» Pass the praise on to the Lord and make your boast in Him.
The fourth thing that the Psalm tells us is that «the humble shall hear of it and be glad.» This means that when you praise God and remember to praise Him continually, you encourage others to rejoice in the Lord. Other people will hear what you are doing and be encouraged in the Lord. People will see your worship and be inspired in the Lord at work. People see your joy in the Lord and want to serve God too. In the church, people come and see you worshiping and say, «Oh, I want to worship like that brother or that sister,» because people will see what you are doing for the Lord, and they will be glad. Their hearts will be challenged to do the same for God.So it’s been a great week. We’ve praised the Lord, and we’re going to have another great week in the coming week.
Let us pray. Say with me, «Heavenly Father, I am very grateful for all You have done for me. Your praise shall continually be in my mouth. In Jesus' name, Amen and Amen.» Well, I’ll catch you again tomorrow. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.