As part
of our weekly worship service we sing the “Doxology.” By strict definition a doxology is a song of
praise, but this particular song is linked with the presentation of our gifts
and offerings. The words of the Doxology
urge the praise of God and include the words, “praise Him all creatures here
below.”
I don’t
think we always examine the words we are singing each work. The song encourages all of us, the people of
the church, to praise God. But the song
also says that all creatures, all living things on earth should offer praise to
God.
It may
seem odd to us to imagine animals giving praise to God. We may have trouble thinking about a bird’s
chirp as a song of praise. We may not be
able to see the mooing of a cow as praise.
Psalm
148 is an offering of praise to God. Who
or what are the creatures that should praise God? According to verse 13, why should all things
praise God?
The buzz
of a bee, the clatter of damaging hail, the wind that strips the shingles from
our rooftops may not seem like praise to us.
These things may seem like negative things. And we still may have problems seeing the
barking of a dog as praise, especially when it keeps us awake at night.
But the
psalmist realizes that all things – kings and rulers, young and old, animals
and even the oceans – should offer praise to God. Not only should all things offer praise, but
I believe this psalm also recognizes that all things do offer praise. The fact that the earth is so diverse, with
so many different animals, each beautiful in its own way is a form of
praise. The incredible magnitude of God’s
creation – the mountains, the oceans, the winds and rain – are all testimonies
to the greatness of God.
But we
must also see that all people are a form of praise to God. The diverse and wonderful people that exist
on earth have all been created by God and are loved by God. We must open the door of our faith and the
door of our heart to welcome all these people, those we do not know yet, into
the glorious love of God.
God
should be exalted over all the earth because His splendor is above all
things. We must open our eyes to see the
beauty of all that exists and welcome all people as part of our praise to God.
DAILY CHALLENGE: Who can you see differently through the eyes of faith?
