Praising God Before The “gods”

Published April 21, 2012 |

I thank you, Lord, with all my heart; I sing praise to you before the gods. Psalm 138:1

What a beautiful thing it is to thank God from the bottom of our hearts. What a powerful thing it is to praise Him—especially “before the gods.” What gods might these be? Each of us probably has a different answer to that question. Money, successful careers or relationships, good looks, health, or brains, or even an active religious life might be gods to any of us. Enjoying our talents and gifts is fine, but trusting our well-being to them is dangerous. Any of these things can disappear for any number of reasons. Practicing gratitude for the good things we have enhances our enjoyment, and deepens our relationship with our Creator. When we can see past the blessings to the Giver, our gifts remain in their rightful place as gifts, not as idols.

It’s even possible to make gods out of our troubles, investing them with far too much importance. Maybe you’ve heard the expression: Don’t tell God how big your problems are; tell your problems how big your God is.

Only One is eternal: Our God. If we take time to invest in our relationship with Him, a change in circumstances won’t go to our head or leave us crushed. He really is worthy of our praise, because when the gods fail us, He will remain. We have nothing to lose by keeping our perspective and priorities in order through praise and thanksgiving.

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for your gifts to us and we praise you for your power.

Reflection for sharing: What gods in your life need to hear you praise the One, True God?

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Meditations

But Jesus answered “The scripture says, ‘Human beings cannot live on bread alone, but need every word that God speaks.’” (Matthew 4:4)

All Bible quotes are from the Good News Translation unless otherwise noted.

It is reassuring that Jesus called fishermen and tax collectors to be his followers. These were laymen, not Scripture experts. It is wise to seek guidance from religious scholars and clergy who have studied Scripture to avoid errors in interpretation. But the Bible is also a gift given to each of us, to use as a basis for prayer and meditation.

I’m not a Biblical scholar; I’m an expert only on my own experience. Following the Scripture passage is a brief meditation along with a question or two as a springboard for your own reflections. Please feel free to share your own thoughts or insights on the passage by adding a comment. All comments are moderated, so please allow some time for your comment to be posted.