"Go through His open gates with great thanksgiving; enter His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and bless His name. For the Lord is always good. He is always loving and kind, and His faithfulness goes on and on to each succeeding generation" (Psalm 100:4.5).
I would like to suggest several reasons why I believe praising God is so important in the life of the believer.
First, God is truly worthy of praise. He is worthy of praise because of who He is and because of all He has done for us. The psalmist reminds us, "Praise the Lord! Yes, really praise Him! I will praise Him as long as I live, yes, even with my dying breath" (Psalm 146:1,2).
We praise God for who He is and for His attributes - His love, His sovereignty, His wisdom, His power, His greatness, goodness and compassion, His faithfulness, His holiness and His eternal, unchanging nature.
These and other characteristics of God are described in many passages. Three of my favorites are Isaiah 40, Psalm 139 and Psalms 145-150.
Second, we praise God for His benefits to us. Though too numerous to mention, some of them are expressed in Psalm 103.
No wonder the psalmist concluded this list of great benefits by calling upon all who read this passage, "Let everything everywhere bless [praise] Him too!"
Yes, we are to praise God first of all because of who He is, and then we are to praise Him for His blessings to us. We should never take for granted the benefits we enjoy as a result of belonging to Him.
Today's Action Point
Praise toward God throughout the day will be on my lips as I recall His many attributes and all His benefits to me.
