To Praise or Not to Praise?

Waking up this morning, it happened once again. Although I suspect that I am not the only one who has awakened to face the day in this manner, I still feel as if I am alone in the overwhelming sense of discouragement I feel pressing upon me. Perhaps I am frustrated about my current life situation or I am angry at the way my life has turned out thus far in my journey. Perhaps it is the constant stress I feel in attempting to make a better life for my family, and yet, appearing to fail at every effort. Perhaps it is a deep dissatisfaction with who I am and what I feel I have become when I look at the man in mirror. These thoughts weigh heavy upon me today and my spirit is being crushed under the weight of this darkening cloud that envelops me. Life seems to have gotten the best of me today. My thoughts and circumstances have succeeded to smother me in a blanket of depression, anxiety, and apathy. And while I have wallowed in my predicament, I hear a still, small voice say, “…and then there is God.”  I open my Bible and read portions of Psalm 145:

“Every day I will praise you and extol your name forever and ever” (v.2)

“They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness” (v.7)

I ask myself, “Have I even considered praising the Lord today?” I know what many of us will say in response to that---“I don’t have many reasons to praise Him today.” But then, the Psalm continues:

“The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion in all he has made…The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. The Lord upholds those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down…You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made. The Lord is near to all who call on him…He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. The Lord watches over all who love him...Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever”  (Psalm 145:8-21).

This day, I have a reason to live. I have a reason to joyfully celebrate life as I have a God who loves me beyond what I can even begin to comprehend. I have a God who remains faithful to me and draw near to me---yes, even in my darkest times, the times when I can hardly find a reason to praise Him. I have a God that upholds me, lifts me, satisfies me, hears me, watches over me, and saves me! He is loving, gracious, compassionate, and kind. Despite all that I see in my life that is attempting to drag me to the depths of despair, it cannot compare to the saving grace of a God who loves me. His hands are and have been reaching for me. With each and every moment, he has proclaimed to me, “I AM HERE!” I need no longer accept the voices that try to convince me that God is anything less who he is. I need no longer believe my life is the exception from experiencing what God has offered me. I need no longer believe the lies that my circumstances define my existence. No, my life was defined before the foundations of the world by the God who created me, gave himself for me, and offered me everlasting life when I did not deserve anything but his wrath. Life is not drudgery. It is glorious because of our God, Jesus Christ and what he has determined that my life should be. I am now faced with a choice. I can either continue to wallow in the facade of seeing life through the lens of my self-pity and self-centered perspective or I can open up my eyes and see a God who is worthy of praise despite all that my life appears to be. My life is not what I make of it-----it is what I will allow Jesus to make of it.  The choice is mine and the choice is yours. To praise or not to praise? That is the question.