Praise Is Comely
Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely. – Psalm 147:1
Looking back over my childhood, I can remember my mother praying over the dinner table. We children would squeeze in
around the table until there were no more chairs, and the rest would stand. Mom would begin to thank the Lord for our food, and intermixed with asking
Him to bless the meal and undertake in matters which were urgent to her, there would be lots of “I praise You, Jesus,” “I love You, Jesus,” and “I
give You praise and will give You praise.” I cannot remember a prayer she said out loud in which there was not plenty of praises. Even though she had
lots of children and little of this world’s goods, she was thankful, and she loved Jesus and did not hesitate to tell Him so.
The Psalmist says that praise to God is comely, which means “suitable or beautiful.” It is not something that God needs from us—in fact,
God does not need anything from us. He is in control of each of us down to the breaths we take and we are dependent on Him for our very lives. Yet,
our praise is pleasing to Him. God supplies all our needs and denies us no good thing, and He appreciates it when we recognize His goodness and respond
with thanks and praise. It is something God desires from us, and it is the one thing we can give Him that is not His already.
Truly, God is worthy of our praise. His love for us is beyond understanding, and His provision for us is without fail. With the Lord on our side, we have
nothing to fear, for there is nothing too hard for Him and nothing He would not do to help us. Giving Him praise draws us closer to Him and dispels
doubt, and it is also a source of encouragement and comfort to us. May we all have hearts full of praise for all God has done for us!