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PROGRAM D-7192

Why should we praise God? Christ-followers are to be thankful, praising, joyful people—it’s on practically every page of the Bible! But why? What’s in it for us to praise God? Consider these wonderful benefits:

         1.  Praise helps us mature spiritually. Praise is the spark plug of faith. The more we praise God, the more our faith and trust in the Lord will grow, and that will cause us to become mature in Christ.

What are some of your personality traits that you know need changing? Do you tend to be a complainer? Are you more negative than positive? Do you have a critical spirit? Is it hard for you to forgive? Do you carry grudges against people? Do you tend to sulk when you don’t get your way?

Whatever would be on your list of poor character traits, praising God is a key principle in changing those traits. Think about this:

  • Praise and sulking can’t coexist.
  • Praise and griping don’t go together.
  • Praise cannot exist with a negative attitude.
  • Praise and an unforgiving spirit have a hard time getting along together.

 

If you start making praise a major focus of your life, those things about yourself that you don’t like but haven’t been able to change—watch them start to change.

        2.  Praise brings healing for us—emotional, mental and physical healing.

Did you know that over half of the available hospital beds are occupied by victims of mental and nervous disorders? As a result we have a huge industry built to address emotional problems.

I believe with all my heart that a massive program of personal and corporate praise could be a big part of the answer to many emotional problems for those who are believers. Think about what happens when you begin to praise the Lord. You are no longer self-focused. The worship and praise of God demands a shift of center from self to God. When praise becomes a way of life, then God becomes the center of that life instead of self. Praise produces forgetfulness of self and forgetfulness of self really helps to produce good mental and emotional stability.

These are just some of the reasons we should praise God. But what does it mean to give a sacrifice of praise?