Friday, February 8, 2019

praying effectively: Praise the Lord (1 Chronicles 16)

(1 Chronicles 16:8-36)
Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples.
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; speak of all His wonders.
10 Glory in His holy name; let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad.
11 Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually.
12 Remember His wonderful deeds which He has done, His marvels and the judgments from His mouth,
13 O seed of Israel His servant, Sons of Jacob, His chosen ones!
14 He is the Lord our God; His judgments are in all the earth.
15 Remember His covenant forever, the word which He commanded to a thousand generations,
16 The covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac.
17 He also confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant,
18 Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan, as the portion of your inheritance.”
19 When they were only a few in number, very few, and strangers in it,
20 And they wandered about from nation to nation, and from one kingdom to another people,
21 He permitted no man to oppress them, and He reproved kings for their sakes, saying,
22 “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.”
23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
24 Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.
25 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; He also is to be feared above all gods.
26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens.
27 Splendor and majesty are before Him, strength and joy are in His place.
28 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
29 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; bring an offering, and come before Him; worship the Lord in holy array.
30 Tremble before Him, all the earth; indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved.
31 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; and let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
32 Let the sea roar, and all it contains; let the field exult, and all that is in it.
33 Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord; for He is coming to judge the earth.
34 O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting.
35 Then say, “Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us and deliver us from the nations, to give thanks to Your holy name, and glory in Your praise.”
36 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting even to everlasting.
Then all the people said, “Amen,” and praised the Lord.

Reminder:  "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will.  When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!

It is God's will:
- that we seek the Lord to rest in His strength and have a personal relationship with Him  (16:10, 11)
- that we find gladness in our hearts and rejoice and glory in the Lord's holy name (16:10, 31)
- that we call upon the Lord, in good times and in bad times (16:8, 35)
- that Israel remembers God's covenants (16:15)
- that we remember all the things the Lord has done (16:12)
- that we give credit to the Lord for all the things He has done (16:28-29)
- that we tell others the gospel message and all the things the Lord has done (16:8-9, 23-24)
- that we come before the Lord and worship the Lord together (16:29)
- that we fear the Lord (16:30)
- that we give offerings to the Lord (16:29)
- that we give thanks to the Lord (16:8, 34)
- that we sing praises to the Lord (16:9, 23)

Today's prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!  Thank You for Your salvation!  Thank You that we can have a personal relationship with You, and can go to You with every detail of our lives.  Thank You that we can still find joy in our hearts, no matter what we are going through!  Thank You for Your strength to help us get through all things!

Thank You that not only are You there for us at all times, but You provide an instant family of God!  Help us to not to neglect going to church to meet with You, to sing praises to You, and to worship You, and to learn more about You.  Let us not neglect enjoying the fellowship of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Lord, help the nation of Israel remember You, and turn back to You - to know that You WILL fulfill all covenants made with them.  But most importantly, that they see their need for a personal Savior.

And while we are going about our daily living, help us to be ready to share the gospel message and everything You have done in our lives, whenever the opportunity presents itself!  Amen.

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