Christmas 1
Preaching
Hear My Voice
Preaching The Lectionary Psalms for Cycles A, B, C
(Occurs in all three cycles of the lectionary; see Christmas 1, Cycle A; Christmas 1, Cycle C; and Easter 5, Cycle C, for alternative approaches.)
The last five songs in the book of Psalms are hallelujah psalms, bringing Israel's hymnbook to a close with a tremendous shout of praise. (Which, by the way, is also a good way to bring the year to a close.) Psalm 148 is the third of those five, and it calls for praise of the Lord from every creature and from every corner of the universe, as well as from the heavens themselves. (This psalm has echoes in Saint Francis' great hymn, "All Creatures Of Our God And King.")
The topic of praise reminds us that there is a significant difference between praising God and praising others. Much of the time, when we praise someone else, it is for one of two reasons. Either we are seeking to bolster the other person -- a noble enough reason -- or we are hoping to advance ourselves by appearing generous -- not always noble and sometimes called "bootlicking."
Praising others to lift them is worthy. Each school year, a certain teacher makes a practice of finding the most unattractive child in her class and whispering to her, "You're getting prettier every day." The teacher says it almost always works. The child begins to blossom into something beautiful.
When we praise God, however, we have no expectation of either appearing generous ourselves or lifting God's spirits. Rather, praising God is good for us. Like many human activities aimed toward God -- prayer, worship, devotional life, commitments, vow-making -- praising bestows its benefits more on the "praiser" than the "praisee." Praising God is yet another way for the blessings of God to flow to us.
Another way to look at the matter of praising is to think of how a talented accompanist makes a lead performer look even better. My daughter -- who as a pianist has accompanied singers, and as a singer has been accompanied by others -- tells me that regardless of how well she is prepared to perform, the skill of the accompanist can make all the difference in how the presentation comes across. This psalm invites us to be talented accompanists for the Lord, to enhance the whole presentation of the divine message and the divine blessings by filling the background with our melody of praise.
-- S. P.
The last five songs in the book of Psalms are hallelujah psalms, bringing Israel's hymnbook to a close with a tremendous shout of praise. (Which, by the way, is also a good way to bring the year to a close.) Psalm 148 is the third of those five, and it calls for praise of the Lord from every creature and from every corner of the universe, as well as from the heavens themselves. (This psalm has echoes in Saint Francis' great hymn, "All Creatures Of Our God And King.")
The topic of praise reminds us that there is a significant difference between praising God and praising others. Much of the time, when we praise someone else, it is for one of two reasons. Either we are seeking to bolster the other person -- a noble enough reason -- or we are hoping to advance ourselves by appearing generous -- not always noble and sometimes called "bootlicking."
Praising others to lift them is worthy. Each school year, a certain teacher makes a practice of finding the most unattractive child in her class and whispering to her, "You're getting prettier every day." The teacher says it almost always works. The child begins to blossom into something beautiful.
When we praise God, however, we have no expectation of either appearing generous ourselves or lifting God's spirits. Rather, praising God is good for us. Like many human activities aimed toward God -- prayer, worship, devotional life, commitments, vow-making -- praising bestows its benefits more on the "praiser" than the "praisee." Praising God is yet another way for the blessings of God to flow to us.
Another way to look at the matter of praising is to think of how a talented accompanist makes a lead performer look even better. My daughter -- who as a pianist has accompanied singers, and as a singer has been accompanied by others -- tells me that regardless of how well she is prepared to perform, the skill of the accompanist can make all the difference in how the presentation comes across. This psalm invites us to be talented accompanists for the Lord, to enhance the whole presentation of the divine message and the divine blessings by filling the background with our melody of praise.
-- S. P.
