The Definitive Word

Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! (Psalm 150:6)

Those are the final words of the book of Psalms in the Bible: “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!”

I know that, because I have just completed the task of writing the psalms by hand, as my morning quiet time spiritual discipline. (Before you think that sounds impressive or that I must be super disciplined, you need to know that I started this a couple of years ago, then got sidetracked with another spiritual discipline, and finally started it again this year.) I have enjoyed this exercise, because it makes me digest Scripture a few verses at a time. Every morning, some phrase or image comes to light in a way that it might not have otherwise come to light if I was just reading.

The Psalms are wonderful windows into which we can glimpse what authentic and real relationships with God look like. It’s not as neat and tidy as one may expect. The Psalms capture the wide range of human thoughts and emotions. In the Psalms you will find expressions of joy and gladness juxtaposed with expressions of frustration, or fear, or even anger. The honesty of the psalmist is both refreshing and startling.

When you start at the beginning of the psalter, you find a beautiful declaration of blessedness for those who delight in living according to the law of God:

“Blessed are they
     who do not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
     or sit in the seat of mockers.
But their delight is in the Law of the Lord,
     and on God’s law they meditate day and night. They are like a tree planted by streams of water,
     which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
     Whatever they do prospers.” (Psalm 1:1-3)

And from that point on, we are taken on a roller-coaster journey of faith that moves us to cling steadfastly to God in joy and hope, while simultaneously allowing us to wrestle with God in regard to the troubles and afflictions we face in life. In the Psalms we will vacillate between desperation and hope, between gladness and sadness, between rejoicing and grief, between comfort and restlessness, between lament and praise.

Truly, one of the more beautiful aspects of the Psalms is how genuinely human they are. Because you and I can relate, can’t we?

We can relate to the awe and wonder that fills us when we consider God’s handiwork in creation.

We can relate to the profound sadness that we experience at the sudden and tragic and inexplicable loss of a loved one.

We can relate to the joy and gladness overflow our hearts when we are assured of God’s steadfast and unconditional love.

We can relate to the guilt of unconfessed sin, but also to the liberating relief of forgiveness.

We can relate to the frustration that overwhelms us when unjust and evil people seem to prevail; and we can relate to the peace that calms our hearts when we know that God’s justice and righteousness will prevail.

The Psalms are beautiful, because the speak to virtually every emotion and feeling of our hearts. Through it all, we are assured that God is with us, and that God is for us.

When you come to the end of a story, you usually have some sense of closure (though people also find ways to leave us hanging so we will buy the sequel later on). Often it is a “happily ever after” sentiment. Or maybe it is a logical conclusion to the plot.

The Psalms, I believe, end with the definitive word for us: Praise.

Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!

As I penned that final phrase in my journal, I was struck by how appropriate it is, that the final, definitive word of the psalter is a word of praise. It certainly makes sense, when you think about it. Because when we realize that through the peaks and valleys of our lives – through the valley of the shadow of death and beside still waters – God is there, with us and for us. And when we realize that God is with us in his goodness and mercy and grace, then the only logical response is praise.

Praise the Lord. Because ultimately, it is God’s goodness and mercy that carries us through every day.

Every. Day.

So, praise the Lord!

Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord!