I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. Psalm 146:2
As Long As I Live
Let’s face it, life is full of distractions. Ups and downs, hills and valleys, good times and hard times. Praising is usually the last thing we want to do when the circumstances of life get tough. It is not a secret that the things of this world, including humans, will disappoint us, let us down, and fade away. Everything earthly thing will return to dust. Therefore, we should not put our trust in anything on this earth. Yet we do, and we are grossly disappointed when things don’t work out. David says in Psalm 146 that we should praise the Lord all of our lives, AND we should sing praises to God as long as we live. That means praising God in the good times and the bad times.
Let’s face it, life is full of distractions. Ups and downs, hills and valleys, good times and hard times. Praising is usually the last thing we want to do when the circumstances of life get tough. It is not a secret that the things of this world, including humans, will disappoint us, let us down, and fade away. Everything earthly thing will return to dust. Therefore, we should not put our trust in anything on this earth. Yet we do, and we are grossly disappointed when things don’t work out. David says in Psalm 146 that we should praise the Lord all of our lives, AND we should sing praises to God as long as we live. That means praising God in the good times and the bad times.
The Lord our God is the only source of pure hope in this world. God in all His goodness and all His majesty is our help. Read what David says about all the wonderful gifts God gives us and all the great things He has done:
Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
He is the Maker of heaven and earth,
he sea, and everything in them—
he remains faithful forever.
He upholds the cause of the oppressed
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free,
the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the foreigner
and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.
All these things He does, yet He wants me to bring Him my tiny trials? They are big trials to me but tiny to the maker of the universe, still He still cares about them. He is for us. The God who does all these marvelous things listed above cares for us and has shown us that love in so many ways.
God is good – that is what we need to remember when things are hard. It is human to only see the hard things in front of our face, but God wants us to remember the good things He has done in our lives and the promises He makes that all will work out for our good. He is God in every circumstance and He is in control of all the days of our lives – even the chaotic and painful ones. Often when we praise Him in the storm, we get such a special blessing and sense of peace.Sometimes it may not bring peace instantly, but our faith in God is not based on our feelings. Our faith in God is based on our knowledge of God, which is why it is so important to remember how good God has been to us.
Think about all the blessings God has given you throughout your life. Think of the way He loves you. He deserves all our praise, all our lives. Are you remembering who He is and how He has shown up over and over again in your life? Lift your voice in praise to Him today and every day.
The Lord reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord. Psalm 146:10
