How to Know Your Purpose and Praise the Lord

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Praise the Lord!

We know that the word “hallelujah” means “praise the Lord.”

But what does it really mean to praise the Lord?

Bible Study Tools defines it this way – “To praise God is to call attention to His glory.”

So, maybe the best way for us to praise God is to simply live our purpose and accomplish His plans for us.

Look at Psalm 148…

Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord from the heavens!
    Praise Him from the skies!
Praise Him, all His angels!
    Praise Him, all the armies of heaven!
Praise Him, sun and moon!
    Praise Him, all you twinkling stars!

Let every created thing give praise to the Lord,
    for He issued His command, and they came into being.

Psalm 148:1–3, 5

I think we typically associate praise with music. We sing praise at church and listen to praise music at home and in the car.

But what if praising God is more than just music? What if God calls all of creation to live with praise?

Scripture tells us…

Let the sea and everything in it shout His praise! Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy! (1 Chronicles 16:32)

I will praise You, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things You have done. (Psalm 9:1)

Praise the Lord! Joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying His commands. (Psalm 112:1)

Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise His holy name. (Psalm 103:1)

Trees praise the Lord by being trees. The sun, moon, and stars praise the Lord by lighting the heavens. Flowers bloom and birds fly and sing to praise the Lord. Giraffes, lions, elephants, raccoons, and rabbits all praise God by doing what He created them to do. Shrimp, salmon, salamanders, frogs, newts, and snails all fulfill their God-given purpose.

So, what does it really mean to praise God?

It means doing our best to live our God-given purposes for the glory of His name!

• The Lord has made everything for His own purposes. (Proverbs 16:4a)
• You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail. (Proverbs 19:21)
• God’s purpose is that people should fear Him. (Ecclesiastes 3:14)
• I will give them one heart and one purpose: to worship me forever. (Jeremiah 32:39)
• Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts. (1 Thessalonians 2:4)

What is our God-given purpose?

To fear and love God. To worship Him with the family of faith. To trust and obey Him … to use our gifts and abilities for His glory. And to love like Jesus.

Let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.

Hebrews 12:1b–2a

Let’s pray…

A Prayer to Know Your Purpose and Praise the Lord

Heavenly Father, Thank you for the gift of our beautiful world. You could have made it all bland and alike but You made it full of magnificent variations of creatures and vivid colors. You made people with unique individual looks, abilities, and personalities.

You made everything for Your plans and purposes. You made it all for Your glory. In love, You gave people free will so that we could love You freely and enjoy a perfect everlasting relationship with You. But we used our freedom and gave in to temptation and ultimately sin.

Yet, You made a way to restore us to Yourself and made it possible for us to once again enjoy a perfect everlasting relationship with You through the sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus. I want to spend the rest of my days thanking and praising You for who You are and for all You do.

Please help me obey Your will and live the plans and purposes You have prepared for me. Help me live every moment of my life for Your glory. Help me shine the light of Your love and make me salty that the world may want to KNOW You. I love You, Lord, and I lift my prayer in the precious name of Jesus. Amen.

I’m so very thankful that we don’t have to figure out our purpose and do this life alone.

Through faith in Jesus, we have the Lord’s Spirit with us and within us to guide us and help us. By God’s grace, we can know our God-given purpose and live it for His glory.

No. We won’t do it perfectly this side of heaven but one of the reasons we will eternally praise the Lord is His heart. He is forgiving. He is gracious and merciful. He is righteous and just. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and always present. He is love.

We can “be still and KNOW Him” and we can trust His promises.

When we SEEK, KNOW, TRUST, LOVE, and live to OBEY Him … well, we can’t help but praise the Lord and do all we can to glorify Him with our whole lives.

So, let’s join every creature in heaven and on earth by proclaiming…

“Blessing and honor and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.”

Revelation 5:13b

May the Lord be with you and bless you and give you everything you need to praise Him by living your purpose for His glory.

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