Devotions
Rev Gav
Praise
Luke 1.65-68
Awe fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread throughout the Judean hills. Everyone who heard about it reflected on these events and asked, “What will this child turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him in a special way.
Then his father, Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:
“Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has visited and redeemed his people.
Reflect
Zechariah, Elizabeth, and the baby John became an overnight sensation. Everyone had heard about their fame and everyone was gossiping about who John might grow up to be. As we will see later on, this fame becomes very useful when John starts his public ministry to prepare people for the coming of Jesus.
Zechariah had been made mute by an angel and now, filled with the Holy Spirit of God, his first words after being unable to speak for nine months, were words of praise to God. For centuries, Christians have used Zechariah’s prophecy in their own worship. They call it the ‘Benedictus’ because in Latin (the Roman language in which the Bible was first translated), the first word of Zechariah’s prophecy is ‘Benedictus’ (which means ‘praise’) and so the title stuck.
Even though Zechariah was a righteous and religious guy, he realised that he still had more to learn about God. He had not got God all sewn up or in a box, and so his opening words were words of praise. In the same way, when we praise God, it is a way of establishing a right perspective between God and ourselves. We are essentially saying, “God, you are king, and we are your subjects.”
Today, begin by praising God. What characteristics of God can you think of that are worth praising? Praise God for those characteristics.
If you were to spend time Reflecting on the character of God, what do you think the first words to come out of your mouth would be? Start by saying, “God is…”
Pray
Holy God
I praise you for who you are,
and for all the wondrous things that you've done.
Lord Jesus, you're the king of all creation,
and I give my life to you.
Holy Spirit, you're the giver of life,
come and fill me again,
that I might give the one God;
Father, son and Holy Spirt,
my undivided worship and my own songs of praise.
This day and forever.
and then