I will bless the Lord
at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul shall make her boast in the Lord:
the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. 3 O
magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt
his name together. –Psalm 34:1-3 (KJV)
Something I have learned about keeping a
positive attitude is it involves a good amount of work. The psalmist
said in Psalm 34 that he would bless the Lord, which means praise the
Lord, at all times. The praises of God would continually be upon
his lips. That certainly sounds like a tall order. Yet,
he knew that by the power of God he could rise above whatever problems
he was facing and live from day to day in an attitude of praise and
thankfulness to God.
Those who take the opposite approach to life
have a draining effect on those around them. Their complaining,
griping, and critical comments are like cold water thrown on us as we
strive to be pleasant and optimistic. Now more than ever, I make
a conscious effort not to complain or criticize others. I dislike
myself the most when I realize I am complaining. I confess I sometimes
do a bit of complaining when I am all alone, yet this too is problematic.
I believe we should be careful what we say to ourselves because the
words have a way of bursting from our mouths when we least expect it.
Therefore, if we find we are complaining, yet no one is around to hear
it, we do well to pause and give thanks to God instead.
If being with someone who complains is a
draining experience, consider the difficulty of spending time with someone
who is endlessly bragging about all he or she has done. Such people
always seem to be trying to “top” our stories and experiences.
If you have been to the Bahamas, they were there last summer.
If you went skydiving, they did that years ago. If you have climbed
Mount Everest, they have done that too – in winter, during a blizzard,
and were bored to death! You get the idea.
A wonderful life strategy is to praise God
rather than complain. Moreover, when we feel the need to boast,
tell instead of the wondrous love and grace of God. Testify of
the blessed works the Lord has brought about in our lives and how knowing
Jesus Christ as Savior is truly wonderful. Praising God and giving
Him all the glory has a powerfully energizing result. We are empowered
to look beyond our present difficulties to God’s greater plan and
purpose. Such perspective is available only to the faithful.
Those willing to go deeper into the divine truths of God’s Word will
reap the rewards of walking with Christ in spiritual power.
Have you complained any today? Try
praising God instead.
God bless you today.