A Psalm of David when he pretended madness before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed.
“I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; the humble shall hear of it and be glad.” Psalm 34:1-2
Blessing the Lord at all times is a natural result of living with an awareness of God and a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, to desire God’s best for ourselves and for others, The motivating force of love is the power to live like God, like Jesus Christ, His Son, our Lord, in the world. And this is not a love that we have to search for or gain only by arduous struggle or exhaustive labor. It comes from the work of the Holy Spirit in us. Our work is to choose to yield to His work in us.
“And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” Romans 5:5
It is the love of God in us that prompts us to be compassionate, caring, long-suffering, giving and forgiving, to desire and to live the truth, to think, speak and act like Jesus.
It is by this means that we bless the Lord at all times, when we speak a word of encouragement to someone, when we pray for someone, when we visit them in times of need, when we speak truth to ourselves and others, when we show mercy and when we judge righteously,
When we rebuke and reprove in love and when we boldly stand for what is right before God and do not succumb to the entrapments of the evil one, when we refrain from dishonest dealings, and disassociate with those who do not, when we walk by faith and when we confess our sins, when we fellowship with those who love God and join them in worship and praise of Him, in all these we mirror the life of Christ.
When we try with a right motive whether we succeed or not, when we celebrate what is good and beautiful and wise, when we resist evil and give no place to the devil, when we are diligent and faithful in or occupations and businesses, when we mind the little things and take time with children, when we correct wrong and honor right, when we rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him, when we fall and keep getting up, because we know his mercy endures forever, when we run to win the race, when we sacrifice for the glory of God,
When we love those who hate us as much as those who love us, when we judge not that we be not judged, when we laugh deeply and dance with abandon, when we take care of the mundane, daily tasks of life with a sense of gratitude and grace.
When we are angry and sin not, when we bring joy to others and just spend time with friends, when we sit alone with contentment and peace, when we enjoy the gifts of friends, when we reward and show appreciation for kindnesses shown to us, when we applaud the righteous winners, theirs and ours, when we honor our parents and the elderly, when we pass on what we’ve learned to the next generation.
When we praise God in the good times and in the bad, when things are easy when they are hard, when we are young, when we are old, when we show kindness without expectation of reward, when we do a job well, whether anyone is watching or not, when we are paid for our labor, or we give our time, when we cook a meal for others, when we volunteer at a place where souls are hungry for the necessities of life, when we trust God with all our heart.
Blessing the Lord at all times and praising Him continually is just about living our lives moment by moment, day by day in all that we do acknowledging Him.
More tomorrow un Part Three…