PASSWORD: THANK YOU – Praise [part 1]

Cantigas de Santa Maria

PRAISE

The expression of praise has changed dramatically over the centuries from the early church to lights and sounds we have on a Sunday. This manuals aim is to give you a foundation that you do not need a Sunday service to praise, the aim is to show you how to praise on a daily basis, at your desk, car, adversity, away from the confines of your chair at church, no guitars or drums or words on a screen … what does praise and worship look like then?

Well, to get there we need to have a firm grasp on the what the bible says about praise and worship, what does the Word of God find acceptable?

And is there a formula in meeting with God? 

Let’s start here at these Psalms:

Psalm 100 (The Message)

A Thanksgiving

1 On your feet now—applaud God!

2 Bring a gift of laughter,

sing yourselves into his presence.

3 Know this: God is God, and God, God.

He made us; we didn’t make him.

We’re his people, his well-tended sheep.

4 Enter with the password: “Thank you!”

Make yourselves at home, talking praise.

Thank him. Worship him.

5 For God is sheer beauty,

all-generous in love,

loyal always and ever.

Psalm 95

Let Us Sing Songs of Praise

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

3 For the Lord is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;

the heights of the mountains are his also.

5 The sea is his, for he made it,

and his hands formed the dry land.

6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!

7 For he is our God,

and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.

By now, I’m sure you have heard that you should live a lifestyle of praise and worship … but in reality how does that look? When you are facing a deadline and you can feel the hot breath of your boss breathing down your neck; or you just suffered rejection from someone you trusted; or when you feel your world come crashing down around you, when nothing is going right? What does a lifestyle of praise and worship look like?

I like to study the past to understand the present and the future, so let’s time travel back to 1647 and find out what our foundational purpose in life is supposed to be.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism was completed in 1647 by the Westminster Assembly and it sums up what our purpose, as human beings should be in life.

“MAN’S CHIEF END IS TO GLORIFY GOD, Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11 AND TO ENJOY HIM FOREVER. Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4

God wants us to enjoy him on a daily basis, have a look through scripture, you will find that there are countless times God calls Israel to party with him. He even gets them out of slavery to come and celebrate with him at mount Sinai and then what happened when Israel saw him … they backed off and sent one man to meet with Him

AND IN THEIR IMPATIENCES AND INSECURITY THEY SCULPTED AN IMAGE THAT IS MORE MANAGEABLE IN THEIR MINDS AND THEIR RITUALISTIC EXPRESSION OF WORSHIP. 

We see, all throughout the ages, God allowing massive celebrations and amazing exploits just to get His peoples attention. Now, I need to say that God as a father, wants to spend time with us, His children, swing us around, carry us on His shoulders, push us on a swing.

He wants to see the unbridled joy on our faces. He does not “need” our expression of worship or praise, It makes Him happy when we express from our heart, how much He really means to us.

Who would not be happy to hear someone that you care about deeply and who you know cares deeply for you too, write and sing a song or dance or art that was inspired by and about you?

In the bible there is a sure fire way to meet with God, I mean a sure fire way to meet God daily, to a point where it is like face to face meetings: in your bed, car or the shower and we read it in Psalm 100 just a while ago… the key is in verse 4:

Psalm 100 (Message)

4 Enter with the password: “Thank you!”

Make yourselves at home, talking praise.

Thank him. Worship him.

Psalm 100 (King James Bible (Cambridge Ed.)

4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,

and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him,

and bless his name.

It seems in verse 4, that Thanksgiving is the password, the means/the key to enter through the gates. Thanksgiving unlocks the presents of God, and miracles start to appear. In John 6:11-12, 23, Jesus took the food and gave thanks and then He distributed it the feeding 5000 people, with baskets left over. There was no 4 piece band, lights, stage, Christie projectors, hot shot musicians. All Jesus did was to thank God for what He had in His hand and then act on that.

John 11:41-44, Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. Jesus simply said “Father, I thank You that You have heard me.” Then He spoke to Lazarus to come out and out he came, after 3 days in the tomb, he was dead dead.

Part two coming soon.