Fabiola Vatel, Editorial Assistant, General Conference Stewardship Ministries
Summary: In this article the author explores the idea that knowing God intimately shows us the way to effectively praise Him.
The routine was the same every Sabbath. Following the praise music I would walk up to the podium and exchange greetings with the congregation.
“God is good?”
“All the time!”
“And all the time?”
“God is good!”
Then, I’d follow-up with a Scripture text, encourage the saints to enjoy the service, and finally return to my seat. Sabbath after Sabbath, like a robot, I fulfilled my duties and sat down. It was my responsibility to promote an attitude of praise throughout the congregation before divine service began. You see, I was the “Praise Coordinator.” However, I struggled with that title. How could I coordinate something I didn’t even understand?
The Bible tells us that the Lord inhabits our praise (Ps 22:3, KJV). I’ve come to realize that God feels welcome in our hearts when we take time to express our adoration for Him. He is pleased when we recognize Him for who He truly is: a magnificent, powerful, awesome Being. When we are finally able to acknowledge that God is God and that we are not, that’s when genuine praise begins. We glorify Him because of His surpassing greatness and praise Him for his goodness. However, in order to truly understand how good He is, we must understand who He is.
In our limited vocabulary, we sometimes fail to find the proper words to verbalize just how much God means to us. We must praise Him anyhow. Since God inhabits our praise, shouldn’t we work at building the most comfortable atmosphere where He can abide? We ought to give God a “sweet home” to live in by continually lifting our voices in admiration and joy, acknowledging who He is.
By getting to know Him better, I’ve grown to understand the extent of how good God really is. He is not only good, He is “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). He listens attentively, forgives completely, and loves wholeheartedly.
He deserves total praise.
