Morning, October 30
Go To Evening Reading
“I will praise thee, O Lord.”
Psalm 9:1
Praise should always follow answered prayer; as the mist of earth’s gratitude rises when the sun of heaven’s love warms the ground. Hath the Lord been gracious to thee, and
inclined his ear to the voice of thy supplication? Then praise him
as long as thou livest. Let the ripe fruit drop upon the fertile soil
from which it drew its life. Deny not a song to him who hath answered
thy prayer and given thee the desire of thy heart. To be silent over
God’s mercies is to incur the guilt of ingratitude; it is to act as basely
as the nine lepers, who after they had been cured of their leprosy,
returned not to give thanks unto the healing Lord. To forget to praise
God is to refuse to benefit ourselves; for praise, like prayer, is
one great means of promoting the growth of the spiritual life. It
helps to remove our burdens, to excite our hope, to increase our faith.
It is a healthful and invigorating exercise which quickens the pulse
of the believer, and nerves him for fresh enterprises in his Master’s service. To bless God for mercies received is also the way to benefit
our fellow-men; “the humble shall hear thereof and be glad.” Others who have been in like circumstances shall take comfort if
we can say, “Oh! magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together;
this poor man cried, and the Lord heard him.” Weak hearts will be strengthened, and drooping saints will be revived
as they listen to our “songs of deliverance.” Their doubts and fears will be rebuked, as we teach and admonish
one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. They too shall
“sing in the ways of the Lord,” when they hear us magnify his holy name. Praise is the most heavenly
of Christian duties. The angels pray not, but they cease not to praise
both day and night; and the redeemed, clothed in white robes, with
palm-branches in their hands, are never weary of singing the new song,
“Worthy is the Lamb.”