From a King to the Most High

By Alessandra Velsor

“I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They tell of the power of your awesome works—and I will proclaim your great deeds. They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.All your works praise you, Lord; your faithful people extol you.They tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, so that all people may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does. The Lord upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.The Lord is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does.The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.”—Psalm 145 (NIV)

If you’re having a difficult time connecting with God today, or getting words out to form something resembling a prayer, then this psalm is for you—a psalm of praise that summarizes the character of our gracious, compassionate, trustworthy, righteous, faithful, and good Father! It’s one of nine psalms that uses an alphabetic acrostic pattern in the Hebrew language, showcasing the importance of structure and order in the Creator, which is also a major characteristic of God.

Today’s passage is, in fact, the last attributed psalm to King David—a poetic summary of David’s own personal experience with his King, the Most High! After experiencing a journey of war, betrayal, infidelity, and sin, David’s failings humbled him, and his authentic repentance reclaimed his legacy to be forever known as “a man after [God’s] own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14 NIV).

There’s no information as to when this passage was written, but one can assume it was composed towards the end of David’s life or perhaps after his time as a king. We can be certain, though, that much had already occurred in the lifetime of this once shepherd boy to fully know and experience how great God truly is and to understand that his King can be trusted because of His faithfulness in His promises.

“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”—Hebrews 10:23 (NIV)

Back in college, I took a literal leap of faith when I went skydiving with a group of friends. If you ever decide to do this, you’ll be handed a rather thick booklet of paperwork you’ll need to sign should something go wrong during your time there. It really took an immense amount of trust in the experts to quickly train us before we embarked on this once-in-a-lifetime adventure!

When I jumped out of the plane, which was flying 5,000 feet above ground, I was mesmerized by how small everything under me looked. The one-minute drop felt like I was floating in the air. The trees and buildings, which were usually much bigger than me, reminded me of my childhood days when I played with my Polly Pocket sets. I’m thankful for the person who was strapped onto me and reminded me it was time to open my parachute, which by the grace of God worked and I landed safely, because I was just so mesmerized by what I was seeing.

Everything that, only a moment ago, seemed so big (both externally, like the trees, and internally, like my nerves) now seemed small. And it made me think about how amazing it is that God—who didn’t just create one planet, but a small planet surrounded by bigger planets in one of many galaxies—cares so much about little, insignificant me! Jesus tells us, “What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows” (Luke 12:6–7 NLT).

God formed and fashioned me in my mother’s womb. Not only does He care for you and me, but He cares about the wellbeing of each one of His creations. Think about that. Even though we’re each tiny specks in the infinite expanse of the universe, He’s intimately acquainted with every detail of our lives and desires relationship with us! His greatness is truly unfathomable! He cares so much that He sent His one and only own son, Jesus, to this little planet called Earth to die for us so we can have a relationship with Him.

God’s intentional in how He relates to His children who call Him Abba Father, as well as all His creation (Matthew 5:45), and He speaks to us according to our individual journeys. God acts with purpose, is steadfast, is abundantly generous with His compassion, and is patient because He’s slow to anger. There are so many reasons to praise Him daily!

Pause: Carefully read and meditate on Psalm 145. How has God shown Himself to be good, compassionate, trustworthy, righteous, and faithful to you?

Practice: Write your own psalm of praise that speaks to your own relationship with the Lord.

Pray: Father, how can I do justice to this psalm in my prayer today? I forever praise Your holy name, not only because of all the marvelous works You’ve done in my life, but simply for who You are. You’re good, trustworthy, righteous, faithful, compassionate, and loving to me. Thank You for caring so much for my life and guiding me through this journey with much patience. There’s no one like You, my King. Amen.