Praise Makes Our Lives Better | The Book Of Psalms Week 2

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- God does not need our praise, He just wants it.

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He commands us to do it because it makes our lives better.

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- Where are we in the Bible?

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Let's begin at the beginning, shall we?

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The Bible begins in the Old Testament,

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written around 3500 years ago.

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The first five books of the Old Testament,

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Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy

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are known as the Pentateuch or books of the law.

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The next 12 books, Joshua, Judges, Ruth,

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1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 King, 2 Kings,

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1 Chronicle, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther.

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Whew. That's a lot.

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These are known as the historical books.

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This brings us to the books of the Bible

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known as the Wisdom Literature.

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It starts with Job and then into

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a collection of 150 lyrical poems known as the Psalms.

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- Today is all about praise.

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That's right praising God.

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And I'm going to give you a spoiler alert,

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it's actually not for Him, it's for us.

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I'm Hannah Driskill,

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and we're going to be exploring Psalm 150 today,

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which has a whole lot to say about praise

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and it even talks about all the ways to praise Him,

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but even in dance.

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And there's a song, I know that you know it,

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that when it plays, no matter where I'm at,

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no matter what I'm doing, I got to sing it.

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Let's do it right now.

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[singing] I've got sunshine in my pocket

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I got that good soul in my feet

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I feel that hot blood in my body when it drops

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I can't take my eyes up off of it,

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moving so phenomenally

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Room on lock, the way we rock it, so don't stop.

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Man, wish it didn't have to stop

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because that song changes

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the whole world for me and my mood.

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And today we're going to talk about

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how praise might just change your perspective

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and maybe even your life. Let's hop to it.

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So by now, maybe you figured out

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that I work at Crossroads Church.

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Some people might give me a title,

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but others might just say, I'm in ministry.

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But for real, y'all, I'm just a church professional.

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That sounds a little weird, right?

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Professional churcher.

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But it's no weirder than a professional hot dog eater

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or professional tag you're it player.

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And I wish I had heard about that one on Career Day,

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because I've got to be honest, I might not be here.

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I'm just kidding.

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Anyway, so speaking of professions, today

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we're going to look at some professional praisers.

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That's right.

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The writers of the Psalms, they were pro pay praisers,

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people who express approval and admiration for God.

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And I'm not talking about your normal worship leader

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who you may have seen saying on an episode like this

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or maybe even your favorite worship artist,

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if you have one that you're thinking about right now.

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Now, though, these folks are paid to lead worship

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in the form of music for God's glory,

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the Psalmists who wrote the Psalms

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were round the clock temple praisers.

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I'm talking the writers and the people discussed

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in the Book of Psalms, they were the Denny's,

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the IHOP, and the superior Waffle House of praise.

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They never shut down.

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I'm talking 24/7 praise

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was their full time job in the temple,

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and that's exactly the way the King David wanted it.

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See, David was the king of Israel at this time,

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and he's often credited with writing many of the Psalms.

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David loved praise, and so he spent a lot of time

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and energy and money dedicated to praising God,

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specifically through music.

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And so, David, the professional praiser

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writes this Psalm, Psalms 150:

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Here we have almost the most perfect litany of words.

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It tells us all the information

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a journalist could ever want.

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It tells us what: praise.

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It tells us where: in the sanctuary

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and basically everywhere because of firmament.

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It tells us why: for His mighty acts

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and His excellent greatness.

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It tells us who: everything that has breath.

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And it spends most of the time talking about how:

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with all of the instruments

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and everything that you have.

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So as you can tell, the writer is adamant about praise.

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He's encouraging everyone to do it,

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even encouraging them to do it loudly.

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And this is because he understands something:

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Praise is a command.

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In Hebrews 13:15 it says:

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In Isaiah 43:21, God commands us:

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This is a commandment.

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No, no, no, not like the Ten Commandments,

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but it's something that Jesus asks us to do

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in Scripture over and over.

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And so cue the entrance, that's us.

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We're the people He's commanding.

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If you're following Jesus,

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He's calling us to praise Him.

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And if you're not following Jesus,

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He's inviting you to stick around and see

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why He's worthy of the praise that He commands.

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Now, some of you might be wrongfully thinking,

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"Oh, how pompous, how incredibly needy

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for God to require praise of us.

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What kind of God demands

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that everything with breath praise Him?"

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I'm calling you out because that's a really good question.

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C.S. Lewis once wrote:

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That's a powerful conclusion.

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See, what he's saying is God's command to praise Him

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is simply based on truth, the truth of who He is.

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And He does not need us to make it true.

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Here's a reality: God does not need our praise.

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He just wants it.

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He's not like man who selfishly desires praise.

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The praise does not make His head get big like ours,

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and it doesn't make Him narcissistic

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because desire and command are not the same thing.

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He commands us to do it

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because it makes our lives better.

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You might not believe me, I'm going to tell you how.

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- Hey, I'm Kyle. - And I'm Andy.

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- Andy. Andy, you're here? - Yes.

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- We're so excited to have you here.

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- Thank you. Glad to be here.

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- Some of you may know, some of you may not,

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Andy is a new member of our team.

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He's actually been around for a long time

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pastoring our Dayton community,

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and I couldn't be more excited.

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He's joining the online team to be our pastor.

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We're super excited to have you, man.

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- Thanks. Really excited to be here

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and really excited to be here with you guys.

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This is not just content.

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This is a community of people that we are building

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all over the country and the world.

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I'm super glad to be a part of this team with you all.

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- Super excited to have you.

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Who picked out your outfit for the shoot today?

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- You know, my six year old has more involvement

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in her wardrobe selection than I do in mine.

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So this was 100% my wife. Thank you, Rachel.

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- Awesome. Yes, thank you, Rachel.

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Outfits aside, I want to assure you

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that whether you call Crossroads home,

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whether you're checking it out,

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you're giving goes a long way and allowing us

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to do videos just like this one.

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- That's right.

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You can give at Crossroads.net/give.

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Now, let's get back to the message.

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- When most people read Psalm 150,

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the most memorable part is the list of instruments,

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and so they have a whole bunch in there.

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But I imagine it's some stuff like

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it does say stringed instruments,

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you know, if this has strings;

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or the tambourines, supposed to praise Him with that,

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or praise Him with, you know, the clown thing, whatever.

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All the Psalmist is trying to suggest

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is that we use whatever we can to praise God.

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And people have written countless songs

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about this very portion of Scripture.

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My personal favorite is called Anthem of Praise

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by Richard Smallwood. It's pretty dope.

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Check it out if you have the time.

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But the reason there's so many iterations of music

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on this one portion of Scripture is because

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it's clear, it's instructive, and it's downright fun.

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It's saying, bang the cymbal

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and, voila, you're doing it. You're praising God.

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But here's the thing, some of us

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might not actually play any of these instruments

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or even own a cymbal.

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Was that scripture not for us?

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It's actually the opposite.

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See the writer, he lists all these instruments,

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not because he's making a comprehensive,

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all inclusive list of how to praise God,

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but because he's trying to encourage us

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to use whatever we have to praise God.

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Why?

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Well, because praise is the proper response.

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Wait a minute, Hannah, what do you mean?

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All right. All right. Let me break it down for you.

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In a stadium or an arena,

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when a player scores a point, what happens?

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[cheering]

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Exactly. The crowd loses it.

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And when the Warriors get their ring later on,

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I'll be losing it too as if I won.

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Now, why?

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Well, because society deems

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that this is the proper response.

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If the team gets praise, it's in that moment

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that we know they deserve praise

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because they've got a point, and that behavior is rewarded.

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So if the proper response is for a mere mortal

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who scored a point is to scream and to dance

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and to shout with excitement,

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I'm gonna challenge us here a bit.

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What's the proper response for a God of the universe

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who has all power?

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And this is what the writer is saying.

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He's saying pull out all the stops.

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Do whatever it is that you have to do to praise God.

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Literally go crazy.

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And yet, sometimes it honestly feels like

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the church, the real praisers,

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the people who should be the loudest are the quietest.

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Now, I'm not talking about just singing or shouting,

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because maybe singing in church is not your thing

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and maybe you don't own any of these instruments.

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And that's okay, because praise doesn't actually

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require singing or even a sanctuary for that matter.

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The writer tells us to praise God in the sanctuary

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and in the mighty firmament,

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which just means sky or heaven.

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And so, yes, there is a corporate praise at church

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or worship, and that's really good.

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And it can happen in a sanctuary, and that's wonderful.

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But the better thing is

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is that when we choose to accept Jesus,

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He actually makes us into a sanctuary

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and He dwells with us.

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So we don't actually need a sanctuary to praise,

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we've just got to start doing it.

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And even more so, the writer says,

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"Give God praise in the firmament,"

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which just means under the open sky.

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So you can praise God wherever there's a sky.

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See the world, they should not be outdoing us in praise.

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Praise is glorifying God with all that you have

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and even whatever you have.

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So it might be telling a friend about Jesus.

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It might mean sharing your story,

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or it might mean actually leaning into worship

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through music or through giving.

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It might mean starting a prayer schedule,

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posting praises around your house

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so you don't forget them.

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It might mean spending time discipling someone.

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See, the writer's goal was never to give us

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an all comprehensive, inclusive list,

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even though that list is awesome.

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His goal was to tell us to use every single thing

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that we have to praise God

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because it is the proper response.

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Now maybe you're on board.

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Maybe you're like, "Okay, Hannah,

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finally it's the proper response. I get it.

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But I don't actually know where to start."

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Well, the writer invites us to praise God

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for His mighty acts and His excellent greatness.

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He tells us where to start.

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And that just means that we should praise God

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for what He's done for us.

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We should look around and think about

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all the good things that we have in our lives

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and maybe even for those around us

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and we should give God praise for what He's doing,

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what He's going to do, and for what He's done.

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See, what I love, though, is the next part,

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because it means that we should praise God

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for who He is.

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We should praise God for His excellent greatness.

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And that should just be enough for us to praise Him.

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See, I think the writer was actually wise

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to include this, because if I'm honest,

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God doesn't always do what I want Him to do.

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He's not some mighty magician who wins, He gets praise,

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He bends to our every whim.

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That's not how it works.

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Sometimes I even need to lament

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and I don't actually want to praise God.

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Now see, if I only praised Him

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when He did something that I wanted,

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it sure would be really, really difficult

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to get out of lament and to praise Him at all right now,

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because the current situation in America

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is so messed up with all the gun violence,

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all of the racially motivated massacres and murders,

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all of the poverty,

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the epidemic that seems to only get worse.

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And even the capital C Church that seems

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more interested in titles and fame

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than they are in love and mercy.

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See, when I think about that,

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I'm going to be honest, y'all.

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And maybe it's not okay to be honest,

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but it seems impossible to praise God, for what He's done,

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because He's not doing what I want Him to do.

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If I only praised God for His mighty acts,

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I would constantly sit and lament.

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And even though Jesus,

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He wants to hear our lamentations, He does.

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We are meant to praise Him.

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See, but when I think about who God is,

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a worthy God, whose very nature is good

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and true and loving,

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even when I can't see it or feel it,

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I can praise Him because of who He is

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will always be greater than what He's done.

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And it requires praise from us, His people.

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So if we don't need a place,

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we don't need this perfect praise tool of instrument,

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we already have a good reason,

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what is it that we need to praise God?

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See, there's only one requirement for praise,

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that is breath.

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And it's this bare minimum requirement

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that's so important because it lets us know

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that there's no fancy requirement.

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You don't need accolades to praise God.

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You don't need a certain position to praise God.

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You don't need to be qualified

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or have the perfect sound.

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Your voice can be shaky.

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The first time you share your story,

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you might leave out some parts

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and all of it is okay

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because God just wants you to praise Him.

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He loves to hear it.

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And now He's not asking you to praise Him

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or commanding you to praise Him

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because he's narcissistic.

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I've got to remind ya'll, this is for us.

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Praising God does something in us.

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Recently I was traveling back from Zimbabwe

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and I was in an airport and,

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you know, had to travel so I was in an airport.

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Everyone looked around me upset.

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Everyone was like angry.

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And of course, traveling internationally

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comes with all the woes of traveling internationally.

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Time, it was boring.

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I was tired, I was hungry.

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Add COVID to all of that and it easily is

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one of the most frustrating nightmares I've ever had.

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So as I was standing in line,

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after standing there for over 30 minutes,

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might I add, I just started dancing.

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There was no music and I looked crazy

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because there was no music even in the vicinity,

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even in the overhead playing.

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And honestly, I didn't care

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because the dancing was making me feel better.

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It actually made me stop complaining

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and it felt good to just move.

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And then I started to notice that others around me

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started to smile and even laugh.

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This one lady asked me, she said, "Where is the music?"

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I simply replied, "It's wherever you make it."

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See what dancing did for me that day

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is what praise does for us.

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Although we are attributing glory to God

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and we should be doing that,

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praise improves our lives

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and the lives of those around us.

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And that is what the writer forgot to tell us.

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He made the perfect litany,

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but he forgot to mention that

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the command of praise makes our lives better.

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Praise is God's invite to dance just for a little while

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while we're in the airport.

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See, it causes us actually to align ourselves with Him,

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to reflect on the expression of His character.

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See, the writer left out that praise is

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our Father's way of cheering us up

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and inviting us into joy,

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because it makes us feel like King David

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when he said in Psalm 31:19,

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How great is your goodness?

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Praise makes us reflect on what God has done for us

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and for others.

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It builds our faith.

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It gives us hope because we look back at

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the God of the Bible and we realize

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God doesn't actually change.

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And if He doesn't change,

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if He healed before, He can do it again.

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If He provided before, He can do it again.

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If He made a way, He can do it again.

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Praise does all of this for us while we glorify Him.

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And finally, praise does something for us

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that we can never quite ourselves do

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if we just thought about it.

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Praise invites us into submission.

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When we praise God,

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we acknowledge His authority as our Father,

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as our Lord, as our place under Him.

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Praise does all of that.

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So here's what I want you to do,

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I want you to figure out your praise tools.

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Maybe it's not an instrument,

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maybe it's not singing,

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but God wants us to praise Him.

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And if we don't, Jesus said

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that the very rocks will cry out,

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because that's just how worthy God is of

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praise. Now, since I don't want any rocks

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to start talking around me,

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that means we all better get to praising.

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So this week, this month, today,

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I want you to focus on praise.

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Focus on lifting up Jesus with your words

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and with your actions.

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This is something to be acted upon, Psalm 150.

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Even if we don't have any of the instruments

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that are listed in that scripture,

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we just got to use what we have.

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So if you have a voice,

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whisper your praises to God throughout the day.

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If you know you need to start singing in church more,

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you need to do it.

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If you dance, dance, dance and praise God.

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When I was younger, the older mothers in my church

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would say, "Hey, if I can't say a word,

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I'm just going to wave my hand."

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So if all you have is a praise wave, just wave.

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If there is something that you know you can do

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to praise God more in your life, do it

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because it's our proper response.

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And God invites us in to praise because it's for us.

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In a moment, you're going to go into a time of singing

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that is actually praising God

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and lifting Him up through song.

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You can join into that if that's your thing,

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but if it's not, I want you to actually sit

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and reflect on what what's being said.

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Praise is all of us just saying our words to God,

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our affirmation and approval for what He's done.

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I'm going to model it right now

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and what it looks like in prayer.

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It might feel weird at first, but you have to know

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that once you start doing it,

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it changes things and God is happy with it.

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So I'm going to pray for us and then let us

00:19:47

listen to a time of music together.

00:19:49

God, just thank You so much for everything You've done.

00:19:51

We have breath

00:19:53

and that is what qualifies us to praise You.

00:19:56

Thank You for Your goodness, for Your mercy.

00:19:58

God, You are just God, You're holy and You're awesome.

00:20:02

Thanks for everything You've done in my life.

00:20:05

Thank You for giving me breath to praise you,

00:20:07

the opportunity to speak to Your people,

00:20:09

to encourage them to praise You, Lord.

00:20:11

You have something waiting for us on the other side.

00:20:14

I ask that You would just bless us

00:20:16

as we go into this time of worship,

00:20:18

bless us as we consider what it means to praise You

00:20:20

in our own lives over the next weeks or months.

00:20:24

Help us to develop a lifestyle of praise.

00:20:26

In Jesus's name. Amen.

00:22:32

- Hey, we hope you enjoyed the message today.

00:22:34

Hopefully you were able to get something out of it

00:22:36

going deeper in the book of Psalms.

00:22:37

- That's right. This entire series, it's all connected

00:22:39

with an initiative that our whole church

00:22:41

has been doing this whole year called the Bible Challenge.

00:22:43

- Correct.

00:22:44

We as a community are in the Crossroads app

00:22:46

through the week, reading

00:22:47

and diving deeper into scripture.

00:22:49

I'm in there. Brian is there. You're in there.

00:22:50

- Yeah. I try to do at least three times a week

00:22:52

to really make it a habit in my life.

00:22:54

And if you want to join us, all you have to do

00:22:56

is download the Crossroads app and get started.

00:22:58

- Hey, that's all we've got today.

00:23:00

We will see you next time on Crossroads.

00:23:03

- And let's be honest, right,

00:23:05

life right now feels like

00:23:06

a never ending loop of microphone feedback.

00:23:10

You know that screeching sound?

00:23:11

Yeah, it feels like everything is like that.

00:23:13

There's a chapter in the Book of Psalms

00:23:15

that has unlocked for me how to drown out

00:23:18

all of that chaotic noise

00:23:19

and instead find something that sounds better,

00:23:22

something we can actually vibe to in our life.

00:23:25

And today I want to show you where that is.

00:23:27

I want to show you how exactly that can work.

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