Praise God At All Times, Even in Pain

​ PRAISE GOD AT ALL TIMES

Lord, it is “all about You.” How easy it is to forget that, to wander off on paths of our self-interest! We fail to keep our eyes, our thoughts, and our energies focused on You. You, Lord God – Father, Son, Spirit – are to be praised. That’s all there is to it.

Sometimes we implore You, sometimes we beseech You, sometimes we bewail Your perceived absence (or what looks to us to be Your incomplete presence), and sometimes we just plain forget You. We get busy, we get talking, we get distracted, we get sidetracked, we get bushwhacked – but always, Lord, always (even amid our most pain-filled complaining and moaning, even amid our loneliest moments of feeling abandoned and forgotten, even in the morass of physical or emotional pain, even in the devouring quicksand of our failures and faults – even there, always there), You are to be praised.

YOU ARE GOD; WE ARE NOT

Lord, You are exalted. We are called to exalt You with our words, our posture, our thoughts, our hearts, our minds, and our strength (no matter how shaky).

So, we praise You for Your creative genius at work in the world, for Your providential care of this creation of Yours, for Your eternal call of love to us across the reach of time and space into the very center of every single one of us.

Lord, we praise You for Your goodness and grace made flesh for us in Jesus. We exalt You for the gift of salvation, a gift we will never fully comprehend but which we gratefully receive and live. We praise You for the Comforter, the Counselor, the Advocate who moves within us by Your gift and Your will of love. Lord, we praise You for the mystery that surrounds You and for the powerful pull that mystery has on our souls.

Lord, we praise You for the simplicity of the gospel’s good news. We exalt You for the truth that Your gift of grace is for us all (not just the rich and powerful, not just the intelligent and masterful, not just the beautiful and popular – but for all of us), broken, injured, imperfect as we are. Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.

Receive our praise, receive our thanks, be present with those who are struggling, be a Comforter to those who are grieving, be a Healer of those who are ill in mind or body, and be forever our God and our Savior. Amen.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION 

• Is it possible for you to praise God, even when you are in pain? Could you write down just one thing for which you are thankful, then praise God for it?
• Have you praised God for who He is? Our Self-Care for Your Soul Printable lists many attributes of God. Why not pray through this list, thanking Him for each point?
• Do you (like me) take God’s gift of salvation for granted? Could today be a day we rejoice together, praising God for His amazing grace?