Originally posted February 8, 2023
Read: Psalm 100; SOAP: Psalm 100:4-5
Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.
Psalm 100:4-5 NLT
It’s easy to praise God when everything is going great in our lives, or when something good happens… a prayer is answered… someone is healed… someone is saved… you get the job you wanted… a baby is born…God provides for a need… However, what about the times when everything seems to be going wrong? What about when someone you love is sick…You don’t have enough to pay the bills…the doctor just gave you bad news…your car needs expensive repairs…what then? Do you still praise Him, or do you get lost in the sorrow, the worry, the concerns, the frustrations, and the fears…? We all know the right “Sunday School” answer – we praise Him – even in the storms of life – right? But – How? How do we praise Him when the walls are closing in, and everything seems hopeless?
This passage gives us the answer … or at least a stepping stone of encouragement.
We make a habit of shouting praise to the Lord… We determine to worship Him with joy, to enter His presence with joyful singing. We acknowledge that the Lord is God and pronounce every morning that He is good. We enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise. We give Him thanks and praise His name! Why? Certainly not because everything is perfect or because it’s always easy – for life isn’t always easy, and neither people nor life’s circumstances are perfect. We commit to praising Him because, as David acknowledges here, “the Lord is good. His loyal love endures, and He is faithful through all generations. So when life has you down – when complaining or whining seems the best or only option left – PRAISE HIM ANYWAY! Recall His past acts of kindness and goodness… remember the ways He has helped you or provided in the past… and give thanks to Him. When your relationship with God is based on these truths and not dependent on your circumstances, you will remain yielded to a lifestyle of praise and cultivate a heart of thanksgiving.
Me from the Inside Out🦋
Reflection and Application
When we commit to praise God, we commit ourselves to an active lifestyle of faith:
- make a habit of shouting praise
- determine to worship Him with joy
- Enter His presence with joyful singing
- Acknowledge that He is God
- Pronounce that He is good
- Give Him thanks
- Praise His name
- Praise Him on the mountains AND in the valleys
- Recall His past acts of kindness and goodness
What would you add to the list?
