Desert Springs Community Church

God be gracious to us and bless us and cause His face to shine upon us that Your way may be known on the earth, Your salvation among all nations.
Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy. For You will judge the peoples with uprightness and guide the nations on the earth.
Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God, blesses us. God blesses us, that all the ends of the earth may fear Him.
Psalm 67

The Word: Yadah (Yaw-daw)

Yadah means literally to use (that is, hold out) the hand; physically to throw (a stone, an arrow) at or away; especially to revere or worship (with extended hands); intensively to bemoan (by wringing the hands) *Strong’s

Physically, the act of raising our hands is tied to times of great joy or sorrow; of honest, unscripted emotion; of being overwhelmed emotionally

The Hebrew word “Yadah” is translated 3 main ways

Praise – Psalm 67

Let the peoples praise [Yadah] You, O God; Let all the peoples praise [Yadah] You.
Psalm 67:3

Let the peoples praise [Yadah] You, O God; Let all the peoples praise [Yadah] You
Psalm 67:5

Giving Thanks – Psalm 138

I will give You thanks [Yadah] with all my heart; I will sing praises to You before the gods.
Psalm 138:1

I will bow down toward Your holy temple and give thanks [Yadah] to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.
Psalm 138:2

Confession Psalm 32:5, Daniel 9:4

I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, "I will confess [Yadah] my transgressions to the LORD"; and You forgave the guilt of my sin
Psalm 32:5

I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed [Yadah] and said, "Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances.
Daniel 9:4-5

The Stories: Solomon (I Kings 8); Ezra (Nehemiah 8)

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.
I Kings 8:22

He said, "O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart
I Kings 8:23

Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up.
Nehemiah 8:5

Then Ezra blessed the LORD the great God. And all the people answered, "Amen, Amen!" while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
Nehemiah 8:6

The Takeaway: With All Your Heart, Soul, Mind and Strength

The praise God desires from us is that which is expressed through the whole of who we are

Our body needs to be part of our worship, we don’t just worship with our intellect

"But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.”
John 4:23

AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.
Mark 12:30

Praise most often comes through giving thanks for who He is and what He has done

True worship brings a spirit of contrition, confession

Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts
Isaiah 6:5

Worship needs to encompass the whole of who we are – our mind, spirit and body