[Songs of Praise] Do You Desire LifeSample

Bless The Lord

When we read David’s psalms, we see how David thought and lived. Through them, we can also learn how to live for the Lord.

David penned Psalm 34 at a time when he barely left one life-and-death situation to run into another, but he gave God the credit for delivering him (see 1 Samuel 21:10–15).

David starts Psalm 34 by boasting about having life from the Lord. Life comes from blessing the Lord. In the first ten verses, we find four keys we can apply to bless the Lord.

The first key is praise. It should be personal (“I will praise the Lord”), continual (“at all times,” regardless of the circumstances), unselfish (David boasts in God and not in his own might), and corporate (“Let us exalt His name together”).

An amazing thing about praise is that when we worship the Lord, He creates gladness in those who have been humbled by life. Our worship can help somebody.

The second key is to seek Him. David says that when we pray, the Lord will hear and deliver us, not from our circumstances but from all our fears. If we look to Him, if we focus on Him, He makes us become radiant and free from shame. When we cry out to God, He hears and saves us from all our troubles. If we fear Him in awe and respect, He places His angels around us and delivers us.

The third key is to trust Him. We have been issued an invitation to experience the Lord and see how good He is. Trust God, allowing Him to work in His time. It is often better for us to learn patience than to be delivered right away. If God delivers us now, we won’t get the benefit.

The fourth key is that we fear Him, understanding Who is at work in us. We often degrade the fact that the God of the universe, who created it all, has heard us, is intervening, and is there for us.

Those who seek Him passionately shall not lack any good thing. His definition of good may be a little different than yours, but because He has begun to mold and shape us, we will start to look for those good things, too.

Lord, bless us as we praise, seek, trust, and fear You. Don’t let our faith shrivel. Deliver us from all our fears and troubles.