Praising God in Prayer
by Nikita Harris
West End Bible Fellowship
Atlanta, Georgia

Sometimes when you pray it feels like you’re just going through the motions. Sometimes you feel like you’re just going through your “gimme” list with God, or like your prayers aren’t going past the ceiling.

Our prayer life isn’t supposed to be all about us. Sometimes we need to get back to basics and pray praising God.

The psalms give us a good idea of how to do this. Let’s look at some of the psalms that praise God for who He is and what He has done.

Let’s take a look at Psalm 13. Sometimes you feel like praying isn’t getting the job done. Sometimes you feel like maybe you need to stop praying and take care of some issues yourself.

The writer of this psalm apparently felt that way.

Psalm 13:1-2.
1 How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

This sounds a lot like much of our prayer life today. How long, Lord, am I not going to have the money to pay these bills? How long, Lord, am I going to be sick? How long, Lord, am I going to have to put up with these people? How long, Lord, am I going to continue to have no job?

Psalm 13:3-6.
3 Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;
4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.
6 I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.

The problems are still not taken care of, but the psalmist has gotten his heart and his focus in the right place. He has positioned himself to receive from God.

We need to learn to be thankful for what God has already done for us, and we need to honor and respect Him for who He is.

Psalm 63:1-6.
1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.

Sometimes life gets in the way of your relationship with God, and you find yourself not having spent time with Him the way you need to. You find yourself hungering and thirsting for Him. When that happens, you need to deliberately set apart time for yourself and God. The more time you spend with Him, the more you will appreciate Him.

Psalm 68:19.
19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.

This is one of my favorite Bible verses. Often we don’t pay attention to the things God does for us every day. The near misses we have in traffic or crossing the street. The little blessings He gives us every day without our even asking Him.

The more we pay attention to what God is doing for us, the more thankful we will be.

Psalm 75:1.
1 Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.

We need to thank God for the great things He has done that are so easy for us to take for granted. We need to thank him for the air we breathe, for the sun, moon and stars that give us light, for the ground we walk on, for the plants and animals and mountains and valleys and rivers and oceans He’s given us to enjoy. The more aware we are of the mighty works God has surrounded us with, the more thankful we will be.

Psalm 103:1-11.
1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6 The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.
8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
9 He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.
10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

God shows His goodness to us not only by supplying our needs and protecting us, but by giving us mercy and forgiveness when we disobey Him. We need to thank God not only for giving us what we need, but for not giving us what we deserve.

Psalm 106:1-2.
1 Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD? who can shew forth all his praise?

We should try! We certainly can’t utter all the mighty acts of God, but we can surely utter some of them. We should be ready and willing to do that, and praise Him, and show people what He does.

Psalm 107:1-2.
1 O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;

We are among those who have been redeemed by the Lord. We need to give thanks to the Lord, and let people know that His lovingkindness endures forever.

Psalm 107:6.
6 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.

This should be true not only of Israel in their distress, but of us in our distresses as well. When we’re in trouble, our temptation is to worry and complain. Instead, we need to cry out to the Lord for the help and deliverance we need.

Psalm 107:8.
8 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

When will we get to that WE praise God for His goodness, and for His wonderful works towards us??

Psalm 117:1-2.
1 O praise the LORD, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people.
2 For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD endureth for ever. Praise ye the LORD.

The Old Testament is not the only place where we are taught about this. Let’s take a look at some places in the Epistles where it talks to the church about praising God.

Colossians 1:12-14.
12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

We need look no farther than the redemption and salvation that God has wrought for us in Christ Jesus to find all the reasons we could ever need to be thankful.

Colossians 2:6-7.
6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is supposed to be an integral part of our walk with God. If we’re not being thankful, we’re not doing it right.

Philippians 4:4-7.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.
5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

We’re not only supposed to be thankful; we’re supposed to rejoice at all times. If you can’t think of a reason to rejoice, do it because God said to.

As long as you keep in mind all the mighty works and good things God has done in the past, and as long as you pay attention to the many things God is doing for you in the present, you’ll never run out of things to praise God for.