The Sacrifice Of Praise!
"I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be
in my mouth."
Psalm 34: 1
We're to present ourselves as “a living sacrifice”
to God. But sometimes that living sacrifice keeps
trying to crawl off the altar! At no time is that
more
likely to happen than during times of trouble when
we're tempted to resent our circumstances.
The writer to the Hebrews
combined the ideas of
sacrifice and continual praise: “Therefore by Him
let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to
God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks
to His name” (Hebrews 13:15).
Why is praise considered a
sacrifice,
especially in the times of trouble? First,
sacrifice involves giving up something.
Second, the sacrifice of praise in times of
trouble means giving up fear, resentment,
anger, and self-centeredness (“Why
me,
Lord?”). To praise God means to trust His
plans and provision and protection at all
times—“continually.”
If you are in a challenging season of life,
choose to praise God
sacrificially for
what He is doing in your life.
"Praise is the best of all
sacrifices and the true
evidence of godliness."
John Calvin