S.M. Wibberley’s Blog

“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.”

Hebrews 13:15

Once upon a time there were two people living in a foreign land who got a package from Germany. When they went to the post office to pick it up, the customs official opened it and took out two packages of tea, the kind of tea that they really liked but wasn’t available locally. Smiling, he said, “You can’t have these; customs regulations!” And with that he put the tea into his desk drawer.

Now, how should these two people react to such random injustice? There are only two basic possibilities: to complain or to praise, and we all know which is correct. These two people took a moment to pray, “Lord, thank you for all the times tea did come to us and customs let it through. Thank you that this time you chose to have it otherwise.” Then those two left the post office with light hearts and good thoughts and had a really good day.

Praise is a wonderful responsibility that God has given us. It keeps us dwelling in the Truth, and, as you know, Jesus said in John 8:32, “…the truth will set you free.” Praise sets us free from the nasty so we can dwell on the nice, as Paul pointed out in Philippians 4:8 (think on whatever is true, noble and right, whatever is pure, lovely and admirable). Such thoughts make it easier to offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving.

“I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. “ Psalm 34:1

Psalm 23 is very familiar to everyone, but recently the Lord has shown me some new, very interesting points in it from the perspective of praise. Praise in and for all things is really the act of surrendering to the Lord at that moment and in that situation. In addition, it is resisting the devil and his suggestion that “this situation is just awful! Poor me!”

Psalm 23 says, “The Lord is my shepherd.” That means He is watching over me all the time, with great care and attention, holding at a distance what is truly bad.

He “makes me lie down in green pastures.” That is, He finds for me the situations which are profitable for growth and brings me there. He doesn’t ask if I like it, nor does He ask my opinion. He makes me lie down there until I’ve learned what is needed. In this I can cooperate with Him by praising Him for what He is doing whether I like it or not.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death….” This refers not just to physical danger and death, but to other aspects, such as dying to self, to ego, to my plans and desires and opinions. This can mean having my plans fail, my vision perish, my hopes dashed.

“I will fear no evil for you are with me…” The difficult happenings in this “valley” are not evil but are allowed by God for my good—being all powerful He could easily prevent them, especially since He is with me all the time, but He allows what He knows is useful for my growth, for my giving Him glory and for my being able to do good to others.

Thinking through this Psalm in terms of praise has brought great joy to me and removed some of my natural thought patterns (the tendency to resent what is hard, to complain, to fear being hurt or rejected–patterns which make it difficult to praise in and for all things). Take a look at the rest of Psalm 23 from this perspective and see what things you can find to encourage you to praise Him in and for all.

Prayer: “Lord, keep opening my eyes to your view of things; keep on speaking to me through your Word as I read it daily; continually move me forward in the discipline of praise. Amen.”

 

“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. O LORD Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in you.” Psalm 84:11,12

 

Praise be to you, Lord God Almighty, Commander of the hosts of Heaven. To you we give glory and honor and praise, for you, King Jesus, Mighty Father, Holy Spirit, are the most High, the most Wise, the most Powerful, the most Good and the most Holy One. You are without beginning, without end, without change, without lack, without evil, sin or darkness.

You are all that is good, all that is right, all that is positive. You are perfect, you are present, you are powerful.

You are the junction point of opposites; your wisdom is on display as you combine what to us looks like oil and water, or square and circle.

You join justice and mercy,
truth and grace,
holiness and redemption,
Sovereignty and man’s responsibility.

You remain just while having mercy triumph over justice. You speak the truth, hurtful and condemning as it may be (“…light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil” John 3:19),

You do this while using this truth to open us to the grace of your gospel (“But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God” John 3:21).

You, Lord Jesus, remained holy while becoming sin for us. Only you in your eternal infiniteness could combine such qualities which to us are so different as to be mutually exclusive.

Truly, only you are worthy of obedience in total surrender. It is right to bow down to you in worship, it is right to rise up before you in obedience. Praise be to you, Lord God, King of Glory and Lord of all.

Prayer: “Lord, I so often rely on my own understanding of things, forgetting that you have a much fuller, deeper, longer, higher view of the situation. Help me to rely on you, not my own weak logic. Help me to submit my intellect intellect to your Word.”

Picture:  opposites of homeless man and businessman joined by love,

Praise is a great privilege, and a great responsibility. To praise in and for all things is expressing faith in a God who controls everything for our good and His glory

Praise is certainly the gateway to surrender and freedom in Christ. Such praise comes by the working of the Holy Spirit through the Word and flows out as we obey what we know to be true.

James 4:7-10 has taken on a new depth for us as we see the importance of praise: “Submit yourselves, then, to God [by praise].

Resist the devil [by praise], and he will flee from you.

Come near to God [by praise] and he will come near to you.

Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded [repent of complaining and griping while we claim to trust God].

Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom [treat grumbling and complaining as the serious sins they are and repent in sadness].

Humble yourselves before the Lord [by praising in faith], and he will lift you up.”

“Lord, help me to humble myself through praise, trusting you with my lips when I don’t feel like it in my heart. May you be honored today by my willful praise. Amen.”

Psalm 32:7b “surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.”

[This danger is not an “if” but a “when.” Floods of trouble will come, but you will set us high upon a rock and keep us safe. “God is our refuge and strength…. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and foam, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof” (Ps. 46:1-3).

This is true today—as the tide of culture now is flowing against you, Lord, against your Word and your children–and it’s true forever that the flood will not overcome us. I praise you, Lord, and give you glory and honor, joy and exaltation, because, whatever might come, you are there in power, love and grace. “My soul, find rest in God alone; my hope comes from Him” (Ps. 62:5).

Help us to rest in you and your greatness today, Lord Jesus, rejecting worry, fear and anxiety, instead embracing love, joy and peace, trusting in you, living in your desire: “May the God of hope, fill you with all joy and peace AS YOU TRUST IN HIM, so that your lives may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:13).

 

 

Psalm 86:15 “…you, O Lord, are…slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”

You are slow to anger. You are deeply, graciously, perfectly patient and therefore persistent in our relationship. I so often fail, especially in my thought life and in my motives, and in each sin I grieve you, giving you pain. Yet you do not respond in anger, but instead kindly correct me over and over.

You start with very small alerts and if I don’t respond, slowly work your way up to larger rebukes, patiently giving me chance after chance to see, confess and repent of one sin after another. I praise you for your great, rich, comforting, healing patience.

You are abounding in love: you are an overflowing spring of grace with an endless stream of goodness that pours out of your rich person, for you are agape love itself.

I praise you that your love is unaffected by any of my failures, that your love flows deeply, widely and powerfully forever. It evokes from me an answering love, a desire to do what is pleasing to your heart. Your love transforms, cleanses, equips and leads us on, consistently, abundantly and graciously.

You are abounding in faithfulness: you are perfectly, unchangingly, unwaveringly consistent. You are faithful to your Character, to your Word, to your Wisdom, to your Promises, to your Plan. We can trust you wholly, wholeheartedly, totally and eternally. You are faithful when we are not; you are faithful when it costs you. You are faithful forever.

Glory be to you, Lord God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. You are totally worthy of worship, of honor, of exaltation. I bow before you today in awe, I rise up in surrender, to obey in praise and thanksgiving. May you be lifted up, glorified and honored in my life today, in my motives, thoughts, words and deeds.

 

I praise you, Lord God, for the beauty of your Character as shown in Psalm 86:15 “…you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”

You lean over the side of Heaven and in compassion follow carefully every aspect of my life, preparing each day in detail, providing protection, chastening, guiding and blessing. In compassion you take me through difficulties to break, shape and transform me. You are wholehearted and full-orbed in your compassion.

You are gracious, giving me the  opposite of what I deserve. You are  kind and good in your dealings with me. You are richly generous, pouring out upon me blessing after blessing: you have given me health, strength, the ability to see, hear, walk and talk; you have given me a fine family, good friends, meaningful work, constant protection and many belongings. And even if I had none of these, I have you! I lack nothing because you are my Shepherd.

Thinking these truths bring freedom, they lead to joy, to gratitude, and eventually to happiness. I praise you, Lord, for this is what you offer us in Jesus. Help us to dwell there, resting in your deep love for us.

Psalm 32:5b-6 “you forgave the guilt of my sin…Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found;”

[In every situation, this is what we have the privilege of doing: running to you in prayer, Lord, seeking you and your help. Prayer is not our last resort, nor the least we can do; it is our first resort and the most we can do for anyone.

I praise you that you can always be found by your children, for you are consistently with us, always watching, always ready to help: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1).

Praise you, that you have called us to a partnership where we must seek you, come to you in prayer, and then you will answer. It is a relationship: wonderful, positive and powerful. It is a responsibility: we must reject the desire to fix things ourselves and instead come first to you, acknowledging and rejoicing in our weakness.

Praise you for the possibility of entering into your presence at each moment and finding help. “In the day of my trouble I will call upon you, for you will answer me” (Ps. 86:7).]

 

 

“surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.”

[This danger is not an “if” but a “when.” Floods of trouble will come, but you will set us high upon a rock and keep us safe. “God is our refuge and strength…. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and foam, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof” (Ps. 46:1-3).

This is true today—as the tide of culture now is flowing against you, Lord, against your Word and your children–and it’s true forever that the flood will not overcome us. I praise you, Lord, and give you glory and honor, joy and exaltation, because, whatever might come, you are there in power, love and grace. “My soul, find rest in God alone; my hope comes from Him” (Ps. 62:5).

Help us to rest in you and your greatness today, Lord Jesus, rejecting worry, fear and anxiety, instead embracing love, joy and peace, trusting in you, living in your desire: “May the God of hope, fill you with all joy and peace AS YOU TRUST IN HIM, so that your lives may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:13).

 

Ephesians 1:4 “..chosen before the foundation of the world to holy and without blame before you in love.:

Lord Jesus, my wonder at you grows as I consider what I am in myself: selfish, proud, weak, unstable, lustful, lazy, impatient, unbelieving and rebellious, to name a few of my sinful tendencies. And then my wonder grows more as I consider what I, as a sinner, deserve: condemnation, rejection, punishment, suffering, failure, death and eternal separation from you.

In the light of this, I am more and more amazed at your unending, rich, powerful and enthusiastic love, poured out over me every day. You are too good to be true–but you are! Too wonderful to be real, but you are! Too great to be grasped–you are beyond human conception, but you have revealed enough of yourself for us to trust you.

This is what you are! Your love is real, demonstrated at the culmination of history at the Cross and Resurrection–and then repeatedly affirmed in my life each day by your forgiveness, patience, kindness and grace.

What a privilege to bask in your love, exult in your goodness, revel in your acceptance, and rejoice in your forgiveness. May I never take any of this for granted, may my wonder at your great goodness ever increase and spill over into ongoing revival, which results in worship through obedience, praise through faith, and rejoicing through surrender.