“God of my praise, Do not be silent!”
~~Psalm 109:1~~

I know this is a very short verse, but God used it to teach me alot.  The phrase “(God) of my praise” drew me in.  As I looked up the definition of praise <tᵊhillâ> it was broken down into three words. 

PRAISE means to worship, to honor and show reverence for God as the One of Divine supernatural power. We honor God with extravagant respect and devotion, and then what goes on between me and God is shown (revealed) in my life and behavior. Praise is a “from the inside out” kinda thing, 

ADORATION means feeling and showing great affection and devotion.  Affection is a feeling and devotion is faithful fervor in serving the Lord.  I see a “what” and a “how” in this definition.  

THANKSGIVING means a public acknowledgement or celebration of Divine goodness.  It can also be a prayer expressing gratitude.  

PAUSE TO PONDER the public and the prayer part of thanksgiving, My mind goes to how a friend of mine recently gave me a bottle of fall hand soap (it’s the warm spicy smell of fall in a bottle – just so good).  Anyway, I thanked her for it personally when she gave it to me, but imagine the added joy she would feel if, when someone mentions how good that soap smells, I say, “Oh my friend Claudine gave that to me!  Isn’t it wonderful!?”  Our private gratitude expressed to God in prayer is one aspect of thanksgiving, but let’s not neglect the public acknowledgment of God’s goodness.  It will bring joy to the heart of our God!  

Because when studying God’s Word, we learn it to live it, it’s time for some self-examination to see if “praise”, “adoration”, and “thanksgiving” are evident in our lives. (This part is always “ouchie”, but necessary.)  Being completely transparent, my assessment of myself left me wanting, and I was on the slippery slope of self-loathing as I looked for these three things in my life. But the Spirit of God just showed me that I’m making it seem so hard to do these things when that’s not the case at all.  He truly is the Comforter and the One who teaches all things.

Think about this.  How often do we see someone post a picture of a rainbow or a sunrise or sunset on social media that are stunningly beautiful?  It wouldn’t take much for us to respond to those pictures with “God did that!!! Isn’t He amazing?!” Those public acknowledgements would make His heart happy and they would bring Him praise, turning others’ attention to the God of our praise.  

This is what God taught me this morning through this short phrase.  I’d love to hear what He said to you.