Thursday, April 20, 2017

All Day, Every Day, Total Praise

“From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.”Psalm 113:3



People who see my pictures on Instagram (@RevSHW) or Facebook know that I love to take pictures of sunrises and sunsets. Even though the sun always rises in the east and sets in the west, no two sunrises or sunsets are ever the same. Each sunrise and sunset is a unique creation given to us by God, specific to the day and where we live.

I think that is pretty amazing.

One day recently, I took a picture of the sunrise, and then later on that same day I took a picture of the sunset. Both pictures were taken from within a few hundred yards of each other, just in opposite directions at the beginning and end of that day.




At the end of the day, I thought of the verse from the psalm, “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.” (Note: “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets is an ancient Hebrew way of saying 24/7)

Two things came to mind for me. First, on a personal level it means that my life should be dedicated to praising God from the moment I awaken until I go to bed at night. All day, every day, I should make it my goal to praise God in what I say and by the way I live my life.

The other thing is that it should be our prayer that the earth is immersed in praise for God, from the farthest point east, to the farthest point west, and every point in between. It makes sense, when you think about it, especially in light of the verse that says, “The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it.” (Psalm 24:1)

Praise should be our default. Praise doesn't necessarily mean we're always happy or glad. It just means that we give God the very best our heart can offer. Praise means we should be in awe and wonder at God's mysterious ways. Praise means giving glory to God in all things. Praise means saying, “Isn't God amazing?!” even when we don't fully comprehend all of God's ways. Praise means we acknowledge all that we have and all that we are comes from God alone.

A favorite song that our late music director loved to use in choral performances was “Total Praise,” by Richard Smallwood. The refrain goes like this:
You are the source of my strength.
You are the strength of my life.
I lift my hands in total praise to you.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism opens with the question, “What is the chief end of man?” The answer is, “Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.” Assuming we can get past the archaic language and its propensity to state everything with masculine pronouns, don't you think that is a wonderful vision and mission statement for us all?

Glorify God, and enjoy God forever.


From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised!


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