March 12 -- "Praise the Lord!"

 Today’s Reading: Psalms 148, 149, & 150

"Praise the Lord!"

The Book of Psalms is a collection of Hebrew poems and songs. The book was originally titled Tehillim, which means “praise songs” in Hebrew. The Psalms express the emotion of the individual Psalmists to God or about God. Different types of Psalms were written to communicate different feelings and thoughts regarding a Psalmist’s situation.

The book of Psalms expresses worship. Throughout its many pages, Psalms encourages its readers to praise God for who He is and what He has done. The Psalms illuminate the greatness of our God, confirm His faithfulness to us in times of trouble, and remind us of the absolute centrality of His Word. As the Psalms present a clear picture of God lovingly guiding His people, the responses of praise and worship to God are never far from the Psalmists’ pens. The portrayal of worship in the Psalms offers us glimpse after glimpse of hearts devoted to God, individuals repentant before Him, and lives changed through encounters with Him.

As we read through the Psalms, we are struck by the range of emotions expressed by the various Psalmists. There are lament Psalms – expressing the writer’s crying out to God in difficult situations. There are praise Psalms – the offering of direct admiration to God. There are thanksgiving Psalms – reflecting the writer’s gratitude for God’s provision and protection. There are “pilgrim” Psalms (also known as “Psalms of ascent”) – which were sung by Hebrew pilgrims going up to Jerusalem for one of the annual festivals. There are also wisdom Psalms, victory Psalms, and “songs of Zion.” And, there are Messianic Psalms (or “Royal Psalms”) – speaking prophetically of the “Coming One”, Israel’s king and Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Psalms causes you to thank God for allowing you to express your deepest emotions to Him. If you are hurting, take a look at Psalm 13. If you are rejoicing, meditate on Psalm 30. Are you looking for a life secured in God’s truth, look to Psalm 1.  Do you need comfort, turn to Psalm 91. Looking for strength – Psalm 46. And the list goes on and on. You get it – God has provided a poem and song that applies to every circumstance of your life.

The Book of Psalms is a wonderful gift given to us by our loving Creator. He knew our needs and our emotions and our need to worship before we were even born.  Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!

What an apt ending to the Psalms: “Let Everything Praise the Lord!”