Psalm Meditation 1130 ¶Sixth Sunday After Epiphany ¶February 13, 2022 ¶Psalm 150 1 Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty firmament! 2 Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his surpassing greatness! 3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! 4 Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! 5 Praise him with clanging cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! 6 Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! (NRSV) ¶I was taught that the difference between praise and thanksgiving is the difference between being and action. We praise someone for who they are and thank them for what they have done. I have discovered that we don’t always use the words according to this definition. We praise pets and children for their accomplishments and thank them for actions. The psalmist asks us to praise God for being God as well as for mighty deeds. The important part is to praise God. ¶Some of us may be tempted to gather up all the instruments and activities and attempt to do them all at once as our act of praise. It may even be possible. Here it is important to remember that the psalmist did not have individuals in mind as this psalm was being written. The psalms were primarily written for the worshipping community. We are each free to choose the instrument with which we are most comfortable. ¶Remember the Sunday School rhythm sets of tambourines, maracas, blocks, and triangles? You could take your favorite if you were first in line, or whatever was left as the line and choices thinned out. While we may not get our favorite instrument, we were still able to make a joyful noise of praise as we marched around the room, or sat in our rows. At that age, our interest and intent was to make the most or the best noise/sound on our instrument. As we age and mature we become more intent on praising God. We may or may not get better with our instrument, but our praise deepens and broadens as we experience the presence of God in our lives. “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!” ¶February 7, 2022 ¶LCM