SINGING HIS PRAISESLessons from the MeadowlarkBy Rev. William Claire Greiner
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Nature abounds with sounds of praise to the Creator. I became vividly aware of this as a child hearing the singing of the western meadowlark. It is one of nature’s most pleasant melodies. This lovely bird with dark-brown wings and a bright yellow breast has a distinctive V emblazoned on its chest. The meadowlark, however, is especially known for its beautiful music. Its song has been described as "cheerful and flutelike, rich and gurgling, confident and assured with a series of bubbling notes that accelerate toward the end." Its voice has a range of eight to ten notes—more than an octave. Meadowlarks have been heard singing double notes, harmonizing with themselves. These remarkable creatures are some of God’s unique messengers of song, praising the Creator from dawn to dusk.
Throughout the Bible the entire universe is pictured as one grand chorus of praise to God. "Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord" (Psalm 150:6). Heaven is filled with continual praise. There are created beings whose sole purpose is to praise God night and day. The cherubim and Seraphim unceasingly exalt and adore Him. "They rest not day and night, saying ‘Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come" (Revelation 4:8). God says, "Whosoever offers praise glorifies Me" (Psalm 50:23). Genuine praise focuses entirely on God, His majesty and His power. It reveres the person and work of Jesus Christ. It lifts up His holy name. Praise is the occupation of my soul with God.
PRAISE IS A CONSCIOUS COMMITMENT "Let us offer the sacrifice of praise." Praise is a deliberate choice. The meadowlark is not forced to sing. It sings because it has a song to sing. It is its nature. For the child of God, singing the praises of the Creator should be as natural as breathing.
PRAISE IS COSTLY
The meadowlark builds its nest on the ground and lives among the grasses and weeds and thistles of the prairie. It is an austere environment and certainly not what we would consider inspiring or conducive to singing. Yet, regardless of its environment, the meadowlark sings as though it lived in a tropical paradise. What an example for us who claim to be believers in Jesus Christ! Regardless of our circumstances, the humblest dwellings can become hallowed ground and cathedrals of joy, whether it’s a cabin, a hospital room, or a tent. The meadowlark often sings in the midst of wild roses, but the thorns do not deter the bird from its joyful song. It is quite easy to praise God when things are going well, when the paycheck is coming in and the family is healthy. But what about those times when thorns encompass us, and pain, sorrow, sickness and suffering pierce our souls? What about those times when relationships are strained or broken? That’s when praise becomes a "sacrifice." Praise demands the surrender of our pride, our ego, our stubborn will. When we praise God, we surrender the center of our lives to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We invite Him to ascend the throne of our hearts. We move from pity and pride to praise! We cannot pout and praise God at the same time. We cannot be angry at our spouses and praise God at the same time. How different our homes and relationships would be if we knew in a practical way the truth of being filled with the Spirit of God, and being motivated to a song of praise, even though the tears flow and the heart aches, and there’s a lump in the throat. My saintly mother on her deathbed kept repeating with simplistic joy, "He is so wonderful." Then as she slipped silently from her earthly body into eternal realms of joy, the family sang through tears the beautiful words of Horatio Spafford: "When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll, whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, ‘It is well, it is well with my soul.’" The singing didn’t stop there. The last verse rose like a victory shout across the intensive-care unit: "And, Lord, haste the day when our faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll. The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend. Even so it is well with my soul." Death is not a disappointment, but an appointment. Praise demands a sacrifice. King David testified, "I will not offer to the Lord of that which costs me nothing" (2 Samuel 24:24).
PRAISE SHOULD BE CONTINUOUS
The meadowlark, perched on a dry tree branch or a fence post, sings all day long. Its songs vary and range anywhere from four to eight minutes in length. What a concert of praise— song after beautiful song! The Psalmist said, "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth" (Psalm 34:1). "My tongue shall speak of Your praise all the day long" (Psalm 35:28). In Psalm 57:7, he testifies, "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise." His heart was fixed. It was not just a temporary emotion of the moment. Praise wasn’t a sudden impulse, but a way of life. One of the characteristics of the early disciples was their continual praise to God. "And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God" (Acts 2:46,47). Too many times we see folk who praise God every six months, or when the paycheck comes in. You’d have to write about them that they praised God "occasionally" or perhaps "semi-annually."
PRAISE SHOULD BE CONSPICUOUS
"The fruit of our lips" means that the sacrifice of praise is not complete until it is expressed. God is not glorified by our silence, our fears, our doubts, our frustrations or our confusions. He is glorified by our praise. Listen to the Psalmist again: "He has put a new song in my mouth, even praise to our God. Many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord" (Psalm 40:3). "I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth" (Psalm 109:30). "My lips shall utter praise" (Psalm 119:171). "O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth Your praise" (Psalm 51:15). "Make the voice of His praise to be heard" (Psalm 66:8). "Let my mouth be filled with Your praise" (Psalm 71:8). There are seven Hebrew words for praise:
True praise always finds expression.
PRAISE SHOULD BE COUPLED WITH THANKSGIVING
Praise and thanksgiving are inseparable friends. "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name" (Psalm 100:4). "Thanks" first, then "thanks giving." One of the great sins today is the sin of ingratitude. A committed Christian will not only praise God for who He is, but he will thank Him for what He has done. With one great voice let us praise Him with thanksgiving.
PRAISE IS COURAGEOUS A PRAISING CHRISTIAN WILL BE A COURAGEOUS CHRISTIAN. A distinctive feature of the meadowlark is the black V-shaped mark emblazoned across its bright yellow breast. It is a symbol of courage and strength. An old chorus says,
Emblazoned on our breasts should be the emblem of victory. It should be a distinguishing characteristic of every child of God.
Remarkably, the meadowlark actually defends its nesting territory by singing. We are to "triumph in His praise" (Psalm 106:47). In Acts chapter sixteen we read of Paul and Silas in prison. They are enduring the "thorns" of their captivity. But they are not sedated or silenced. "At midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God; and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosened." The power of God was unleashed as His people prayed and praised. Our churches today need such a shaking. There is a remarkable story in 2 Chronicles 20:21. "And when Jehoshaphat had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying, ‘Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.’" Verse 22: "Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated." Satan is rendered ineffective when the saints of God rise up to praise the Lord. "Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud upon their beds; let the high praises of God be in their mouth; and a two-edged sword in their hand" (Psalm 149:5,6). Many of God’s saints have lost their song. Because they have lost their song, they have lost their joy. And America has lost its greatness. Our nation desperately needs revival. Lawlessness, strife, contention, divorce, murder and abortion are rampant. We need to seek God’s face. I fear for the next generation. What kind of legacy are we leaving for our children and our grandchildren? Will they inherit our passions or our praises? The great need of the church today is a genuine encounter with the living God. Only then will we have a faith that cannot be weakened by persecution or imprisonment or threat of death. It will be a victorious faith—a faith in a God with Whom nothing is impossible. An encounter with the living God will manifest itself in praise and prayer and power. It will result in a total abandonment to the will of God. I am also convinced that we need to ask God to forgive us for the times we have wallowed in self-pity rather than lifting our voices in praise to Him. Our brief sojourn on earth is but a prelude to eternity. Our praises here in the meadowlands of earth are but rehearsals for the courts of mount Zion. One day we shall stand in the presence of the Lamb and praise Him with untiring and unfaltering lips for His grace and His mercy. We will rejoice in the victories that were won in our pilgrimage. And we will thank Him for the thorns that the Holy Spirit used to bring forth some of the most beautiful songs mortal tongues could ever express. And we will praise Him without end in that Land where the roses never fade. Let us, by God’s grace, commit ourselves to "show forth His praise to all generations, that a people yet to be created may praise [halel — talk on and on about] the Lord " (Psalm 79:13; 102:18).
PSALM 150 Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in His sanctuary: praise Him in the firmament of His power. Praise Him for His mighty acts: praise Him according to His excellent greatness. Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet: praise Him with the psaltery and harp. Praise Him with the timbrel and dance: praise Him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise Him upon the loud cymbals: praise Him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD. God can build a mighty mountain in a moment; —W.C.G. I WILL PRAISE YOU
GOD IS MAGNIFICENT . . .
GOD IS MIGHTY . . . Designer of planets Developer of galaxies Draftsman of mountains Decorator of valleys Director of the universe GOD IS MINE . . . Lover Listener Lawyer Light Life "Surely God is in thee, and there is none else" (Isaiah 45:14).
"We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation" (Isaiah 25:9). GOD! WHO ELSE? Who else but God can fill all space,And keep each planet in its place? Who else can measure out the sea, Who else can lace the shore with sand, Who else can paint the endless sky, Who else can make each plant to grow, Who else can bathe the world with showers, Who else can transcend time and space, Who else can hear the faintest cry, Who else can see the aching heart, Who else can kindle flames of love, Who else can bid the storms to cease, Who else can ease the throbbing pain, Who else can transform loss to gain, Who else can take a sinful soul, Who else can take away death’s sting, Who else can give me life divine, No one but God could ever be —Wm. Claire Greiner PRAISE HIM! All Material Copyrighted ©1998 |