One of my most favorite thing to do is to praise my God. To thank Him for Jesus. To thank Him for all He has done for me in the past, and for what He is doing in my life now, and for giving me a hope for my future. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord, thank you Jesus!

When I did a search on the word praise in Bible Gateway, it listed 363 Scripture references in the NIV. That’s a lot. I read many of them; and especially like those listed in the Book of Psalm. There probably are a lot more that fall into this category of praise when using other words of like-meaning.

Praising God involves worshiping Him. Praising has to do more with thanksgiving and gratitude for all He has done and doing; but worship has more to do with a reverence and honor to Him for who He is; a divine power, holy, just, honest, caring, provider, and full of wisdom, to mention a few.

As God provided Ruth with a guardian-redeemer in Boas, a kinsman redeemer, God has also provided us with a guardian-redeemer in Jesus His Son. (Ruth 4:13-14; John 3:16-17))  A guardian is a person who cares for another. A redeemer is a person who recovers property. Mankind was God’s created property in the very beginning. A redeemer pays the price needed to ransom those held in captivity. The nature to sin held mankind captive after Adam’s disobedience; but now we have a kinsman redeemer in Jesus who reinstated the nature of God in us.

Our praise to God should always include being thankful for Jesus, our redeemer, who paid that price when He died on the Cross. Included in the package of Salvation is all the heavenly blessings provided by our Father God. It’s by our faith in Him that we receive these blessings in this lifetime. Our praise is an outward expression of our heart-felt gratitude to God for all He has and is doing in our life. Our words of praise must also contain giving glory and honor to God for who He is. Our praise and worship of Him give Him reference and respect for who He is: holy, righteous, and just.

If we want more of His presence in our lives, all we have to do is spend more time with Him in prayer, praise, worship, and fellowship. Learning to acknowledge His presence in our lives is a great and powerful tool to walking according to His plans for our lives. Praise is the key that brings us into the presence of God. It’s in His presence that we receive revelation and truth of His Word. We can tap into His faithfulness to perform His word (keep His promises) by our faithfulness to spend time in His presence. Our faith in Him activates His power in our lives.

According to Romans 10:17, faith comes by hearing and hearing the Word of God. When we praise God and speak His Word over our lives, our faith rises to new levels to be closer with Him in fellowship, and to receive more and more of His heavenly blessings.

So I challenge you to look for His blessings each day, and create the habit of praising God throughout each day as instructed in Psalm 34:1, “at all times His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”  We have much to be grateful for in Jesus.