PRAISE!

A Sermon by Bill McDonald from Psalm 33:1-12

June 8, 2008

Psalm 33

¹ Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous.

Praise befits the upright.

² Praise the LORD with the lyre;

make melody to him with the harp of ten strings.

³ Sing to him a new song;

play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

⁴ For the word of the LORD is upright,

and all his work is done in faithfulness.

⁵ He loves righteousness and justice;

the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.

⁶ By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,

and all their host by the breath of his mouth.

⁷ He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle;

he put the deeps in storehouses.

⁸ Let all the earth fear the LORD;

let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

⁹ For he spoke, and it came to be;

he commanded, and it stood firm.

¹⁰ The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;

he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

¹¹ The counsel of the LORD stands forever,

the thoughts of his heart to all generations.

¹² Happy is the nation whose God is the LORD,

the people whom he has chosen as his heritage.

It was well past midnight. We had worked hard all evening learning camping skills in preparation for being counselors that summer at Chi Rho Camp, which required us to set up homes in the woods, to lash logs to trees for benches, to cook on a campfire. We were exhausted at the end of the day. Stretched out on our sleeping bags under a tarp suspended between trees in a deep forest, everyone was fast asleep…but something woke me. I have never known what is was, but I have been forever grateful. I sat up, rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and looked around. Moonbeams filtered down through the canopy of leaves and danced across every trail and opening. The radiant light came in at a slant and shimmered between the shadows. It was as if the woods were alive and wearing some kind of cloak sparkled with moondust and rhinestones. The light drifted here and there, springing away like a sprite caught by intruding eyes. I had the feeling that I was witnessing something created for fairies and angels alone, too magical for human eyes. I sat there for the longest time, stunned, wondering if I should wake the others, wondering if that would break the spell and disperse the vision. Finally I just whispered a few words of thanks to the Creator who had provided me this captivating show, a vision which would stick with me, undimmed, 35 years later. As I lay back and closed my eyes, I finally knew what, or who, had awakened me. A gift from the Giver. All praise be to God, Earth-maker, Star-guide, Moon-lighter, Creator of the Heavens, all praise. “For he spoke and it came to be; he commanded and it stood firm. Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.”

Think for just a moment of a time, a place, a sight, a moment when you saw God’s handiwork and praise just filled your heart. Seriously, take a moment and think of that special moment. Now let the praise fill your heart and whisper a few words to God.

Saying the words makes a difference, doesn’t it? Coming in on Wednesday for a landing at Bluegrass Field on board an American Airlines regional jet, we hit the runway with a jarring thump that caused all the passengers to look across the aisle at each other, eyebrows arched. The flight attendant came on the intercom and said, “We are pleased to bounce you into Lexington, Kentucky.” Everyone broke up because she had expressed what we all felt. That’s the way praise works. Expressing even in faltering stutters what you experience at God’s hands somehow makes your heart even fuller. “Praise befits the upright,” says the psalmist. The “upright” is a word used to indicate the congregation in this psalm written for use in temple celebrations. Notice that the psalmist does not say that praise benefits the congregation. Praise is not flattery that we use to brown-nose God. God isn’t going to give more to those who openly appreciate divine gifts. After all, the basis for praise is not what God gives, but what God is and does. We say that God is magnificent, not to get better blessings, but to express what we think about God, to describe God’s nature. Praise is a reflex, not a ploy. It befits us. One can understand why those who believe in such a God as we declare would speak words of praise. All that said, there is a benefit to praise. It honors God and it fills us with good things such as gratitude, enthusiasm, and trust. But at its best, it comes spontaneously.

You know the type of kid he was. Maybe you were that type of kid yourself. He always thought less of himself somehow. Everyone else seemed to have some secret to life that he had missed. They knew how to hang out together in easy laughter and witty repartee. Not him. Others had friends who would walk the paths with them as everybody went to the dining hall or to small groups. Not him. At meals someone always sat beside other people, while he would choose a table off to a side and empty, hoping but not believing that someone would notice him. His head hung down when he walked or sat. His brow furrowed and his eyes averted. He didn’t blame the others; he didn’t even want to hang out with himself himself. She was the exact opposite type. A crowd seemed to collect around her everywhere she went. She was at ease at the dance, on the soccer field, in leadership, everywhere. She was the total package—looks, skills, personality, charm, intelligence. One day during free time I stood at a distance watching him trudge aimlessly down a gravel path, a cloud of insecurity hovering over his head. I uttered a prayer for him. There is only so much an adult can do at camp to make a kid feel included. Then my prayer stuck in my throat as I saw her approaching on the same path from the opposite direction. “Oh, great, this is all he needs…to be bypassed once again.” Which she did, seemingly without even noticing that he existed. But then she stopped and turned around. You could see something working in her mind. She called his name, skipped up to him and wrapped him in a big bear hug. I couldn’t help myself. I shouted so loud that the hillsides echoed, “Way to go, God!!! Yes!!!” It was reflex. For I suddenly understood what was going through her mind. It was God’s steadfast love; God called her to action. “[God] loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.”

Sometimes we concentrate so ferociously on doing right and on what we have done wrong that we miss entirely the sheer joy of seeing what God has done alone. Don’t quit trying to do right. But instead of spending your prayer time blasting yourself for all your omissions and commissions, spend it instead luxuriating in all that God has accomplished. That will send you out more pumped up, more ready for compassionate deeds and heroic stances than all the breast-beating you could ever do. Let the praise of God bring you joy.

Take a moment to think about something God has done that just makes you smile, that raises your hope and erases your despair. Seriously, take a moment. And say the words to God.

Sometimes praise is hard for us because the world is not a perfect place yet. We don’t want to give God his props until the job is finished. The wonderful columnist and author Erma Bombeck wrote: “An estimated 1.5 million people are living today after bouts with breast cancer. Every time I forget to feel grateful to be among them, I hear the voice of an eight-year-old named Christina, who had cancer of the central nervous system. When asked what she wanted for her birthday, she thought long and hard and finally said, ‘I don’t know. I have two sticker books and a Cabbage Patch doll. I have everything!’ The kid is right.” And Ms. Bombeck was right. We have everything…because we have God.

So, “Praise the LORD with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings. Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts. For the word of the LORD is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.”

In the stars God’s handiwork I see,
On the wind God speaks with majesty.
Though God rules over land and sea,
What is that to me?

Til by faith I met God face to face,
And I felt the wonder of God’s grace,
Then I knew that He was more
Than just a God who didn't care,
That lived away out there
and .....

Now God walks beside me day by day,
Ever watching o'er me lest I stray,
Helping me to find that narrow way,
God is everything to me.

(He's Everything To Me by Ralph Carmichael adapted)