This week in our current series, Seeking Him, we will focus on recognizing how vital it is to include singing our praises to God as part of our quiet time.
Each Saturday we have been looking in-depth at a few of the most important aspects of having a dedicated, purposeful quiet time. At the beginning of this series I had the privilege of sharing with you a few thoughts from some friends about their own quiet time. Gathering from their experiences, there seem to be a few basics which include:
Bible reading
Prayer
Praise Songs
Meditation
Seeking the Lord
If you are like me, you have found that singing and praising through song is so uplifting, don’t you think? Almighty God is the point…He is the focus…keeping my mind and heart set toward Him is my aim. He is the reason why I sing praises to Him!
Psalms 147:1, 7
Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God,
for He is gracious and lovely; praise is becoming and appropriate.
Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
sing praises with the harp or the lyre to our God!
There are more reasons to praise our God than we have words enough to do so! Here are just a few of His attributes:
- He is full of glory (Psalm 138:5)
- He is great (Psalm 145:3)
- He is wise and powerful (Daniel 2:20)
- He is good (Psalm 107:8)
- He is merciful (Psalm 89:1)
- He is faithful (Deuteronomy 7:9)
And just some of His wonderful works:
- He is the One who saves us (Psalm 18:46)
- He keeps His promises (1 Kings 8:56)
- He pardons sin (Psalm 103:1-3)
- He gives us our daily food (Psalm 136:25)
There is a day coming when all will praise God by bowing to Jesus the King!
Philippians 2:10-11
That in (at) the name of Jesus every knee should (must) bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
And every tongue [frankly and openly] confess and acknowledge
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Almighty God is oh-so-worthy to be praised! Psalm 107 would be a great place to be encouraged with reminders of what God has done for His children! Throughout this particular psalm is listed proof after proof of God’s goodness.
Psalms 107:8, 15, 21, 31
Oh, that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness
and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men!
The Book of Psalms has been called the ‘Praise Book’ of the Bible. In it are literally hundreds of examples of praises and reasons why praise is oh-so-very important. Did you know that every single one of the 150 psalms included in the Book of Psalms is an actual song? Steve Pearson, a wonderful singer and songwriter, has written and recorded many songs using the words of the Psalms and his own inspired musical accompaniment. Here is a link to his website http://www.psalmistry.com/ Check it out!
As I read the Scriptures, one thing is clear: singing our praises is a good thing!
Join Miss Amy Grant as she sings Sing Your Praise to the Lord!
Psalm 92:1
It is good to praise the LORD and make music to your name, O Most High…
Psalm 138:1-5
I will confess and praise You [O God] with my whole heart;
before the gods will I sing praises to You.
I will worship toward Your holy temple and praise Your name
for Your loving-kindness and for Your truth and faithfulness;
for You have exalted above all else Your name and Your word
and You have magnified Your word above all Your name!
In the day when I called, You answered me;
and You strengthened me with strength
(might and inflexibility to temptation) in my inner self.
All the kings of the land shall give You credit and praise You, O Lord,
for they have heard of the promises of Your mouth [which were fulfilled].
Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the Lord
and joyfully celebrate His mighty acts, for great is the glory of the Lord.
Keep seeking Him and enjoy your quiet time with your Lord! As you seek Him, He will be found…He promises!
Jeremiah 29:12,13
Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me,
and I will hear and heed you.
Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity]
and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
Praying for each of you! I know that the Lord will answer your heart’s cry as you are seeking Him with all your heart!
♥ coleen
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If you would like to send a personal message to Coleen concerning this series, you may email her at: Coleen@girlfriendscoffeehour.com
About coleen hayden
Oh Coleen, I so love this! Miss Megan told me about a feature in the YouVersion app where I can listen to the Bible, so I've been putting on Psalms every night as I lay in bed. I just love listening to the Psalms as I fall into a peaceful sleep. It is so relaxing and a great way to focus my mind away from the troubles of the day and put my mind on my King!
king david is SUCH an example to us of a heart consumed with his God, don't you think? how kind of our Father to include the recorded psalms in His Bible for us to be encouraged by! i am sure that listening to the psalms does put your mind and heart in a peaceful place, jennifer! <3
I love this Coleen and so fitting, lately I have had such an urge to have worship concerts for God. I feel a little silly sometimes for this however it is crucial to do for Him because of the feelings I have towards Him. Just tonight I was singing in my car so loudly because I am just so thankful for His love and everything thing that comes along with His love:) Thanks so much for sharing all of the scriptures that go along with singing praises to God!!!
So beautiful, Coleen! My goal for this year was to be more faithful in offering up praise to God. What a blessing you are in sharing your praises! <3