Psalm 146
Praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord all my life. I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. Don’t put your trust in human leaders. Don’t trust in people who can’t save you. When they die, they return to the ground. On that day their plans come to nothing. Blessed are those who depend on the God of Jacob for help. Blessed are those who put their hope in the Lord their God. He is the Maker of heaven and earth and the ocean. He made everything in them. He remains faithful forever. He stands up for those who are treated badly. He gives food to hungry people. The Lord sets prisoners free. The Lord gives sight to those who are blind. The Lord lifts up those who feel helpless. The Lord loves those who do what is right. The Lord watches over the outsiders who live in our land. He takes good care of children whose fathers have died. He also takes good care of widows. But he causes evil people to fail in everything they do. The Lord rules forever. The God of Zion will rule for all time to come. Praise the Lord. Psalm 146 (NIRV)
The psychological tenant of reinforcement is used to describe any stimuli which strengthens or increases a specific response. One of the most used types of reinforcement is called Positive Reinforcement. With positive reinforcement you add a stimulus to the situation to gain the desired result.
As Christian’s we should be looking for ways to reinforce our relationship with our Sovereign God and his son, Jesus. I believe that one easy way to do that is to praise God with all that we do and all that we are. The Psalm today tells us to do just that right from the jump.
Praising God doesn’t always mean shouting from the rooftops or holding your hands in the air during a moving song. It can be having a heart of gratitude for the things that he gives us each and every day. A quick prayer of thanksgiving for the food that we eat or the sunrise or those around us that we love. The psalmist reminds us of all things that God is and does. It sings of his greatness. And the greatest of all God’s gifts, for which we should be most grateful? We should be persistently thankful for the gift that he gave us in salvation through the death of his one and only son, Jesus.
Though we don’t sing the traditional Doxology regularly the opening line reminds us to:
Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise him all creatures here below
Praise him above ye heavenly hosts
Praise father, son, and Holy Ghost
As we constantly seek and strive to have a stronger relationship and walk alongside Jesus in our faith journey, finding ways to instill positive reinforcement are important. One great way to add that stimulus of reinforcement is praise and glory to God.
Questions for Reflection:
- What can you do to praise God today?
- What things in your life immediately give you pause to reflect on his greatness?
Prayer:
Good and glorious God,
We thank you and praise you for all that you have done for us here on earth and in heaven. Keep our hearts and minds focused on you and use the good things in our lives to create positive reinforcement and strengthen our relationship with you and your son, Jesus. Amen
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