Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Praise God in his holy sanctuary! Praise him in his stronghold in the sky! Praise him for his miracles of might! Praise him for his magnificent greatness! Praise him with the trumpets blasting! Praise him with piano and guitar! Praise him with drums and dancing! Praise him with the loud, resounding clash of cymbals! Praise him with every instrument you can find! Let everyone everywhere join in the crescendo of ecstatic praise to Yahweh! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Psalm 150:1-6 (The Passion Translation, TPT)

In meditating on this chapter of Psalms, it is evident to me that praising God is not an option- it is commanded. Ten times it tells us to praise the Lord. It is written in the imperative, meaning it is telling us to do it- to praise Him. And praise is not just for those who are more boisterous or outgoing in their personalities. Nowhere in this chapter does it say praise Him except for those of you who are more quiet-natured. Nope, it says everyone everywhere. In the King James Version it says that everything that has breath is to praise the Lord. So, if you’re breathing, you should be praising Him at every opportunity.

According to this Psalm, praise is a loud and joyous affair. Praise Him with every instrument you can find! We are to make a joyful noise. And praise involves both heaven and earth. We need to be joining in the crescendo of ecstatic praise to Yahweh, our almighty Deliverer, Savior and soon-coming King. Every cell of our bodies should be involved in praising Him. Don’t worry about what people might say- their opinions are far less important than showering Jesus with our love and adoration.

So, let’s be obedient to the command to praise God with our whole hearts. Praise Him everywhere all the time. He deserves our praise- so let’s give it to Him. Praise the Lord- just go ahead and do it!