“Through Him then, let’s continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips praising His name.” – Hebrews 13:15
As I was reading this phrasing, it struck me as interesting, “sacrifice of praise”. They seem to be opposites or a contradiction of terms. A sacrifice costs us something. It is a gift which is given that you probably wouldn’t have given on your own. But because of a greater purpose or a greater blessing we give it anyway.
Praise seems easy for us. It is simply a thank you to God for what He has done. It is acknowledging through word and deed that God’s hand has been at work in and around us. So, on the surface, these do not seem to belong with each other.
But there are times, which we all go through, which praise is the last thing on our minds. We want to focus on all the things we wanted Him to do. We linger and get stuck in our disappointments and expectations of what we thought God should do that it becomes difficult if not seemingly impossible for us to shift our eyes to the things He has done.
Then this phrase becomes a little clearer. When you don’t feel like singing, do it anyway. When you don’t feel like looking past what you envisioned, look and see what God actually has done. When disappointment and frustration cloud the joy in your life, force yourself to look the fog and offer up a service of praise. Easy words, but how in the world are we supposed to do that?
The first 2 words are the key. Through Him. He doesn’t leave you floundering on your own and just expect you to figure it out. He is with you and will help you see what He has done. He loves to show us what He has done, because it reveals more of who He is. So, lift up that voice, lift up those eyes, lift up those hands because He is worthy of our praise no matter how you feel right now.
Following Him,
Pastor Jeff