Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
Shout for joy upon the highest mountains, sing of His love in the deepest of valleys.
He is the Lord, who saved us, who is with us; Yes, our God is with us, and He is never going to leave us.
He never leaves us, and, yes, He never forsakes us!
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
He is trustworthy, He is faithful. He is full of glory, and He is great.
He is able to do all He says He will do, for He is who He says He is. Praise Him!
He is for us, and not against us. He lay His life down to prove His everlasting love for us. Praise Him!
That just came out of nowhere. And, yes, here we are again. It’s Monday, and we’re celebrating a day after remembering Him as a congregation in communion… but I’m also personally celebrating more than 36 hours without food. My body is feeling sharp, and I’m letting my mind in on the action again, here, and now. Hence, the praise; the Psalm.
In fact, let me try to write another one – or add to that ‘Psalm’ above – by being more specific. By testifying.
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
For men speak against us, and women betray us;
But in the moment of their betrayal, Father, Your Spirit has proven His absolute worth!
Your Spirit has proven faithful, convicting us at the greatest point of pain – and He has convicted us of Your everlasting love, Your peace that goes beyond all understanding.
When we had our opportunity to lash out, even in righteous conviction, we have seen the mind of Christ at work; You, Lord, have given us the words of grace and reconciliation!
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
For in the darkest of moments, You have proven that Your grace and glory shines all the more!
Oh, praise Him, you, His people!
His faithfulness is great, ever present in our loneliness. Praise Him!
His love for us is deep, and our entire beings are saturated with His love. Praise Him!
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
For as You are our peace in the drawn-out suffering, so You are present in the sudden calamity!
When we crash, when we are struck, both in the face and in the heart, You respond with us, in grace and glory.
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
For You have shown Your greatness and Your authority, even over all beyond our control!
Yes, Lord, You direct our hearts.
The hearts of the kings of the earth as as much in Your hand as the hearts of our brothers and sisters.
You think about all of us, You consider all of us in love as You move the hearts of kings and servants.
Our God is the God beyond all we perceive as possible. Praise Him!
Our God is infinite, and our God is eternal. Praise Him!
I think it’s just right, not only for us to consume, but to create.
There was this reel that was recommended for me in Instagram. The video was just a playthrough of what I’m assuming is Minecraft. I suppose it was that way to keep the consumer engaged. The real content was the audio conversation. The speakers were characters from Family Guy, and Peter ironically was the one who was making all the points while Stewie and the rest were asking him questions.
Peter was illustrated as wearing a tinfoil hat, and the conversation had a very interesting point: That the ‘music’ we have today is more mind conditioning than it is art… and the companies that own all the record labels would have those listening (1) to keep on listening, and (2) to be fixated on Heartbreak, Cash and Chaos.
Today is also May 26, where we pull up Proverbs 26:
1 Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.
2 Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, a curse that is causeless does not alight.
3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools.
4 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself.
5 Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.
6 Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.
7 Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless, is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
8 Like one who binds the stone in the sling is one who gives honor to a fool.
9 Like a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
10 Like an archer who wounds everyone is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.
11 Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.
12 Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
13 The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road! There is a lion in the streets!”
14 As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed.
15 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.
16 The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly.
17 Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.
18 Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death
19 is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I am only joking!”
20 For lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases.
21 As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.
22 The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down into the inner parts of the body.
23 Like the glaze covering an earthen vessel are fervent lips with an evil heart.
24 Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips and harbors deceit in his heart;
25 when he speaks graciously, believe him not, for there are seven abominations in his heart;
26 though his hatred be covered with deception, his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
27 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
28 A lying tongue hates its victims, and a flattering mouth works ruin.
See, I’ve split the entire chapter into three sections of verses… and Solomon talks about three types of people in each of these sections: The fool, the sluggard, and the talebearer. Could it be that the fool lashes out (and, in other Scripture, says ‘there is no God’) out of heartbreak? That the sluggard, the lazy one who is wise in his own eyes, has only cash in his mind? Could it be that the talebearer is the one who speaks toward chaos, because he suffers from chaos?
We can consider this correlation, but I submit that in place of heartbreak, God, through Christ, reconciled us to Himself that now we are able to call Him our Father.
In place of the love of money, Christ emptied Himself and rose from the dead, and now nothing can ever separate us from the everlasting love of God – who, by the way, owns every beast of the forest, and the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10-12).
Finally, in place of chaos, we have the Holy Spirit – who is not a Spirit of confusion, but of peace.
The characters in the video I mentioned earlier came to a solution. It’s pretty simple: If the world wants us addicted to the music, and fearing the silence when we remove our headphones, we would do well to embrace the silence… and, to take it a step further, we’re to step into the silence, not consuming, but creating – we make our own music. Sing.
Write, even.
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised!
Through Christ, we have been saved from heartbreak.
Once we were rejected and doomed to oblivion, but through Christ’s death and resurrection, we have been reconciled to God.
Now, we are accepted by the Father, and have eternal life. Praise Him!
Through Christ, we have been rescued from the love of money.
Once we were deceived that we could work, doing more good than evil, that we would be like God…
But through Christ we have seen that it is God who came down to us and proclaimed us righteous.
Now, though the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy, Christ came and gave us Life, and Life truly abundant. Praise Him!
Through Christ, we have been delivered from the chaos.
Once we were lost, without direction. We were in darkness, not knowing the steps before us;
But through Christ, the Holy Spirit has been poured out upon us, and we operate in power, love, and sound judgment.
Now, in Christ we live, and in Christ we are held together. Praise Him!
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised! Amen.
Exercise and writing are my meditation.
While I move my body, my mind is set into place.
When I type and move my mind, my soul is calibrated accordingly.
It’s what’s needed in this world that throws all that it can against you, leaving you fat and stupid.
Yet deeper than the movement of the mind, and of the body, lies a foundation.
This is a foundation that would makes all of it make sense…
This foundation is the Rock, not only on whom we stand, but on whom, again, we are held together.
All points to Christ, our Rock and Salvation.
Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised.
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