Praise The Lord Lead your family through this devotion, an excerpt from Praise Him: a 30-Day Family Devotional.
READ TOGETHER: PSALM 117 This Psalm is the shortest chapter in the Bible, consisting of just two short verses, but these two verses are powerful. Not only is it a command to praise the Lord, but verse two is gospel-centered. The Psalmist called all peoples( not just the Israelites) to praise the Lord because of His great love for them— a love that we now know was poured out on the cross.
DIVE DEEPER TOGETHER Praising God is something that we, as believers, are commanded to do. We clearly see that command in Psalm 117, but that’ s not the only time we are commanded to praise the Lord. That command is given to us around 250 times in the Bible! If God felt we needed 250 reminders that we are to praise Him, we should probably pay attention.
We understand that we are supposed to praise the Lord. We’ ll get to the how of praising later, but we need to start by asking why. Why should we praise God?
As we read through the pages of the Bible, we understand more about who God is and what He has done:
• God created the world( Gen. 1:1).
• God sent Jesus to die on the cross because of His love for us( John 3:16).
• God is faithful( Deut. 7:9).
• God is just( Ps. 7:17).
• God is good( Ps. 25:8).
As we read God’ s Word, we learn more about Him, and as we learn more about Him, we see reasons why we should praise Him. Look back at Psalm 117:2. Does the Psalmist give us a reason why we should praise God?( Because of God’ s love and faithfulness.) We praise God because of who He is and what He has done. God deserves our praise!
Praising God is also important to our walk as believers. It draws us closer to Him as we think about who He is and what He has done. When we focus on praising, it centers our hearts on Him and can even change our attitudes.
Praise the Lord. It’ s a command, but one we should want to obey!
DISCUSS TOGETHER
• We are commanded to praise the Lord, but how would you define praise?( Praise is our response to who God is and what He has done. It is an expression of reverence, adoration, and thanksgiving to God.)
• Who does Psalm 117 tell us is supposed to praise God?( All nations are to praise God. Everyone is to praise the Lord.)
• What reasons are we given in this passage to praise God?( We praise God for His love and faithfulness.)
PRAISE TOGETHER As a family, what can you praise God for today? _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________