December 29, 2009
GET BUSY LIVING
Psalm 148
Robert Green
Central Truth
Everyone and everything should praise the name of the Lord!
Key Verse | Psalm 148:13
Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted . . . .
(Psalm 148:13a)
Psalm 148
Praise the Name of the LORD
1
Praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD from the heavens;
praise him in the heights!
2
Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his hosts!
3
Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars!
4
Praise him, you highest heavens,
and you waters above the heavens!
5
Let them praise the name of the LORD!
For he commanded and they were created.
6
And he established them forever and ever;
he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away.
1
148:6
Or it shall not be transgressed
7
Praise the LORD from the earth,
you great sea creatures and all deeps,
8
fire and hail, snow and mist,
stormy wind fulfilling his word!
9
Mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars!
10
Beasts and all livestock,
creeping things and flying birds!
11
Kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth!
12
Young men and maidens together,
old men and children!
13
Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty is above earth and heaven.
14
He has raised up a horn for his people,
praise for all his saints,
for the people of Israel who are near to him.
Praise the LORD!
Dive Deeper | Psalm 148
Is it just me, or does it seem like only yesterday when Y2K hysteria gripped us? It's hard to believe that an entire decade has passed, and that we are moving into the Teens. For me, this past year has been particularly momentous: I turned 50, completed 20 years working for the same company, and celebrated 25 years of marriage (to the same girl!). A 50/20/25 trifecta!
Given the relative youth of the Watermark congregation, these milestones put me in the "Old" category, which is why verse 12 caught my attention. I love the way The Message translates it: "Praise God from earth, you . . . [r]obust men and women in their prime, and yes, graybeards and little children." (Psalm 148:7, 12) (I love this word "graybeards" because it makes an "old" guy like me sound more like a swashbuckling pirate).
This psalm encourages everything to praise God, and, in all my 50 years, I have never found reason not to praise Him. I admit that sometimes words of praise are hard to come by in difficult circumstances, such as when a friend's child dies, when there is more month than money, or when my walk with God seems dry. But in every such situation I have found that choosing to praise the name of God, while not always a natural response, is always the right response. By doing so, I place my focus on Him and not my circumstance (think Peter walking on the water in Matthew 14), and I'm lifted up above the flood waters surrounding me.
Maybe you have a movie that you cannot stop watching. For me, it's The Shawshank Redemption. If I happen to flip by it, I cannot turn it off! When I think about how I should live, I think of the words of Andy Dufresne: "I guess it just comes down to a simple choice really, you better get busy living, or get busy dying." Let's choose to get busy living for a God who is worthy of our praise!
Discussion Questions
1. Can you think of a time recently when it was difficult to praise God for your circumstance? Praise Him right now.
2. What will happen the first time you see gray in your hair? Will you hide it or embrace it? See Proverbs 20:29.
3. Look at Psalm 148:8 and see that lightning does God’s bidding. What's the closest you've ever been to lightning? Did you feel the power of it? Consider what it will be like to come face to face with a God powerful enough to control lightning.
4. Are you planning a New Year's Eve celebration that will glorify the God who has given you another year?