Title Praise? Are you Abu?
Contents
“The Lord is great, and he is to be praised with all the utmost, and to be feared above all gods; for all gods are vanity, for the Lord made the heavens” (1 Chronicles 16:25-26)
How to praise God with all your heart? When I was praising during the praise session, there were times when I just mumbled without meaning. When I found out about myself like that, I was ashamed to think about how pathetic God must be.
Praise, in English, praise. If you look up the dictionary, it means 'praise' or 'praise'. Then, I think that praising someone would be in line with the word praising. However, when it comes to praise, if it is not a compliment that comes from the heart, it can be said that it is 'abu' for a purpose other than the purpose of praise.
For example, when you meet a manager or a professor at work or school, you might say, "Wow, Professor, you look great today." But if it is truly an admiration that comes first from the heart, not from the head, without any wind, it would be a 'true compliment (praise)'. But if you said that to get good grades, you'd be flattered.
Therefore, it is difficult to differentiate between praise (praise) and flattery. However, the difference is whether you want to receive something in advance and prioritize your own interests or not.
I think the same goes for praising God. If we don't give out the songs with those precious lyrics in a serious way with a prayerful heart, it's probably 'Abu'. I don't think we are praising in order to receive grace when we sing. We praise God because He deserves to be praised. The purpose of praise is only praise.
It is often said that there are tears and warmth when we go to worship and praise meetings, but I don't think we are praising to experience something. It is only our duty to praise Him who is worthy to be praised.
I also went to worship and praise meetings and received grace to the point of tears. After shedding tears, I forgot all the hardships and gained new strength. But after that it was a problem. Rather than going to meet God, I often went to meetings for catharsis, to relieve my frustration, or to relieve stress. As a result, even after struggling and praising for over two hours, tears (?!) did not come out, so at the meeting I went to gain strength, I was tested even more. But later I realized. He was flattering, not praising. I realized that God wanted a harmonious balanced faith.
I was able to praise God freely without the burden of receiving grace. Because God is worthy of praise. He filled those with dry tears with tears, and gave joy to those who lost their joy. He made people who lack knowledge understand the Word and gave them intellectual grace. So the phenomenon of receiving grace is not limited to crying and feeling some uplifting emotion.
Evidence of receiving grace must be demonstrated in life. We must prove our faith with our lives. Please don't be shy and praise. Of course, God is also the One who reveals secrets when we seek Him and find Him. However, I think it is important to first believe in what God will give us when it comes to giving praise. Please be satisfied with the very existence of God. Please pray and anticipate that such a time will be such that there will be no lack of meeting with God alone, not a gift from God.
So, how can we truly praise him? I believe that we can sing praises from the heart only when we truly meet and experience the God shown in the lyrics before we sing.
A God who heals, a God who forgives, a God who judges. When you meditate on the Word and obey to live according to the Word, even if there are hardships, if you experience God's faithfulness in it, you can give praise with all your heart. If I do not obey what God commands me to do and run away like Jonah because I think it will be difficult, it will be comfortable, but my body is comfortable, but my heart is not at peace. God's work is done with the power that God gives. Don't run away from it because it looks like you're going to be tired or there will be hardships. In the midst of it, God will give you the strength to bear, so the path of obedience is more pleasing to me and the way I live.
"Aha, God is such a man! He is a loving and merciful One. He is a righteous One who always judges iniquity!!" There must be such a whole-person meeting, there must be enlightenment, and when we praise, we can praise powerfully and the grace is multiplied. Just as praise naturally comes out of your mouth when you realize the strengths and surprises of the other person, it is not just praise with your lips, but praise with the wonders you experience in life, praise for life itself, holy living sacrifices, and praise with your heart and everything. I want to see myself again. We must pray for that passion to be restored.
We would like to conclude today's message.
Before praising God, we must meditate on the Word day and night, long for it, and realize what God is like through the Word. It is something that we can give praise that history takes place. It is to become worship and praise with the whole heart in spirit and truth in the Holy Spirit and truth. I sincerely pray that all of you will truly praise God and become God's joy. Amen!