How to Praise God When We Don’t Feel Like It
How to Praise God When We Don’t Feel Like It
When I was a little girl, our church joined two other churches in the area for a revival. Each night of the week we would gather at one of the churches for a service. The first night was at our sweet little white church. The next night we drove a few miles to the brick church next to the river. It was tall, and stately. All three choirs joined together to worship and the service reminded me of a home.
The final night was at the African-American church downtown. It was on the blvd and the building was brick. I don’t remember what was preached, or the music, but I remember the atmosphere. It was a different culture we were walking into that day. I remember because God was felt more strongly than before. The entire worship portion was done standing. There was clapping, singing, and the JOY in the faces of the entire congregation poured out like a drink offering to the Father. The hands were raised, and the tears were there. It was a very emotionally (and at the time I was super uncomfortable) worship service.
Looking back, I remember feeling super out of place because it was so different than how I was used to worshiping. Today I find myself enjoying the memory because I realize it was my first time experiencing the outward worship experience.
Feelings are an amazing gift from God, but being cautious with our feelings is also wise. I think the danger in having an emotional worship experience (all of the time) is that what do we do when we don’g “feel like” praising God?
My grandmother died on a Sunday. It was October 31, 2010. I’ll never forget it because I sat in church with the news, and tears streamed down my face as we sang. I couldn’t praise God in those moments because grief was too heavy. I stood, but my heart was aching and I didn’t even want to be there.
Recently, I’ve been listening to Sara Grove’s newest album, Abide With Me. The remake of Praise to the Lord struck me with this line:
“Ponder anew, what the Almighty can do.”
Tweet ThisPonder anew. Think, meditate, and dwell your mind on what the Almighty can do. When we are feeling like we could never lift our hands in praise ever again, we need to ponder anew the things the Almighty can do. Isn’t that what the psalmist does? When he praises God, he remembers all the LORD has done for him.
“We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.” Psalm 75:1
Recount. List out the wonderful deeds God has done for you. If you are wondering what you could list, go to His word. Look at the account of creation and see what God made for you. Look again at the life of Jesus. The death of the Savior or your sins. Read Romans.
Let the Amen Sound from His people again.
Amen. Amen. Amen. We can sing to Him when our hearts are hurting because He is good. And we can remember all He had done. So how do we praise Him when we don’t feel like it? We ponder anew…..