Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Are You Louder Than a Rock?

“When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives,
 the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices
for all the miracles they had seen:
“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus,
“Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
“I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
Luke 19:37-40
 

 
Several years ago my wife and I were walking along the shore of Lake Ontario here in western New York near a place called Chimney Bluffs.
She began to see rocks on the beach that she liked and so I dutifully began picking them up and carrying them.
She collected as many as I could carry.
On some of the larger rocks she painted the words:
“Ain’t gonna let no rocks out praise me!”
Grammar aside, the sentiment came from the passage above.
We have much to praise God for.
I say that regarding my wife and I but I also say it on behalf of all believers.
Sometimes, it’s easy to miss those praise moments because our old nature wants to pull us out of praising Him and lead us instead into complaining and grumbling.
Our old nature seems so much better sometimes at recognizing what we ‘don’t have’ or what ‘isn’t right’.
The new creation that we are in Christ must turn our focus to Him.
That happens as we begin to praise Him for who He is.
Our eyes move from us to Him!
I remember some words that must be from an old song that went something like this:
“Be silent ye mountains
Ye fields and ye fountains for this is the time I must praise.
Time to sing praises to the Rock of the Ages…”
Are you praising Him today?
Don’t let the rocks out shine your voice of praise to Him!    

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