Psalm 108:1-5 (NIV)

My heart, O God, is steadfast; I will sing and make music with all my soul. Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.

Explanation:

My primary language to God is, and always has been, worship. There is something about stepping into an atmosphere of worship that makes the surface under your feet a holy ground. Praise ushers in the presence of the Almighty King. He chooses to abide in the presence of His people when we praise Him.

Worship has been a burial ground for me. I can bring all my burdens into His presence with me, relieved to finally lay them down at His feet, knowing they are covered beneath safe and regenerative soil. In seasons of heartache and pain, it was only in worship that I encountered the deep comfort and unchanging quality of His character. Like a rock that is immovable, His presence would meet me there in the dark place, and give me a foothold to stand on again. When there was nothing else I could count on, the depths of His presence would offer me a lifeline to hold onto when I lifted my hands in worship. When I was mourning the loss of something precious, His goodness would envelope me in a warm embrace and pour into my empty places, and shore me up once more. When I enter His presence wanting, no more than an empty shell of flesh from pouring out of myself to the demands of life, His fullness always meets me there, offering me new life from His unending abundance. I’ve never raised my hands in surrender without finding my God’s hands already there, enveloping mine in His, so glad to welcome me home into His presence.

I have found that there is a praise that creates space in your spirit for God to work. It’s where you can praise Him for all the victories He’s brought you through, while praising Him in advance for all that is coming ahead of you. In praise, you can set the table in faith for victory over a current battle, and taste His triumph in the spirit before you ever see it with human eyes. Praise paves the way for His will to be done in your life.

When we worship and praise Him with our ALL, bringing all of our needs, all of our joys and all of our pain, all of our intelligence and all of our limitations, all of our hopes and all of our fears… when we praise Him with all of our souls, He meets us there with all of Himself.

Application:

1. Create a space for bringing your all to God today by finding a safe place to worship without having to worry about others. Turn on some praise and worship on your preferred device, and spend time worshipping in His presence with all your soul.

Prayer:

Lord God, You invite us to enter Your gates with thanksgiving, and to come into Your courts with praise. I praise You for Your unchanging nature, for Your love that is higher than the heavens, and Your faithfulness that reaches to the sky. Thank You that You are a God who meets me in that holy place of worship when I surrender to You with my all. Help me to bring all of myself to You. Teach me how to worship, God! In Jesus’s name. Amen.