Praise from the rooftops

 Why praise? The Jews ask: does God really need our praise? I would say, we need it. Praise is our orientation for transformation. Praise is not a denial of lament, it is a declaration from suffering of our trust in the One who has befriended us. It is therefore an action of faith. Praise puts us in a position of thanks which allows deeper contact with Our Source.

 The reason worship is the beginning of Wisdom, is that it admits we need, and have fallen short..so it begins the healing process of making us and the world more whole.

The Psalms start and end in this action of praise. It is our proactive response to God. We need praise more than God does. In heaven, praise may be redundant, or obvious. Here, it is a choice to say Yes to God in the midst of the partialities of life. The interruptions of being, down here, are overcome by praise.

 This is why David teaches that praise overthrows depression! “A garment of praise for the spirit of depression.” As he put it. So we put on that garment in response to the many depressions of life down here. It is not a denial of suffering, but an active response to it. Praise puts us in a position to receive the blessings.

So, praise is neither naive or gullible, it is rather alignment with what is Real. Praise positions us for Grace.