Knock Your Praise Out of the Park!

We hear a crack as the bat makes contact with the baseball. The fans in the stands erupt in cheers as the ball soars over the wall and the player rounds the bases in celebration of a home run!  

I like going to baseball games and rooting for my team. It’s thrilling to share in the excitement of the game while sitting in the stands with other fans. If you’ve ever been to a sporting event, you know exactly what I mean. The crowd is ecstatic, and there is a sense of exhilaration in the air. Clapping, cheering, singing, and chanting are heard in response to every play of the game. We shout out to the athletes as they take their places on the field and we praise them for every outstanding play!

All of this reminds me of how we should approach our heavenly Father in worship and praise.

Psalm 98 (NLT) is a beautiful chapter about praising, singing and giving thanks to the Lord for everything. We are to break out and sing for joy as He announces His many victories. In a joyful symphony before the Lord God our King, we bring harps, trumpets, and sound the ram’s horn. According to verses 7 and 8, all living things, including the seas and rivers, clap and shout with praise in celebration of our Lord’s victory! My mind can clearly picture how that lovely praise party would look and feel. I’m reminded of how overjoyed I was at the baseball games when I was shouting, throwing my hands up, and cheering the players on for each victory on the field.   

I need to stand back and consider whether I praise and thank God as enthusiastically as I do for my favorite team. It is essential for our spiritual walk to devote time to worshiping God, whether that be through listening to worship music, singing, praying, or simply reflecting on the victories God has brought about in our life.

Psalm 98:7-8 says,  

Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the earth and all living things join in.

Let the rivers clap their hands in glee! Let the hills sing out their songs of joy.

Let’s pray:
Help us to remember the value of praise and thanksgiving, heavenly Father. Let us join the rivers, lakes and all of creation in bowing before You. Every day, we will lift our eyes and hearts to you and delight in You. Father God, thank You for all Your blessings, great and small. We have the victory because You won the battle.

Amen, in Jesus’ name! 

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Scripture is quoted from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.