I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works; I will be glad and rejoice in You;  I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High. (Psalm 9:1,2)

 

Every morning I wake up very early and turn on the News.  On average, the first 20 minutes of the  broadcast will focus on incidents that are tragic.  The good news seems to be reported near the end.  I am not being critical of the News Stations.  There is truly a lot of bad news to go around.  If we are not careful, we can find ourselves being very pessimistic about the present state of the world.  As Christians, we are no strangers to hardships and difficulties.  Our prayers are continuous because of one problem or another.  But there is still a reason to praise.  God is still in the blessing business.  He still sits high and looks low.  Yes, He is still worthy to be praised.  No matter what you are going through, you still have a reason to praise the Lord.

 

The words preceding each line in the passage above are "I WILL."  David, the writer is making it clear that he is committed to praise, tell, rejoice, and sing about the Lord.  In other words, he has a choice, and he chooses to praise the Lord.  In our lives, we are constantly making choices.  When we get married we say, "I will."  Before we take the witness stand in a trial, we raise our right hands and say, "I will."  When we are inducted into the military, we say "I will."  Such commitment means that no matter what the consequences may be, we are going to follow through.  Certainly, we ought to be able to say, "I WILL PRAISE THE LORD."  

 

Just think of how good God has been to you.  He has sustained you during the difficult times.  He has put enough food on your table that you have not been hungry for long.  He has provided shelter for you when you needed a place to rest your head.  Even during illness, He has provided grace to comfort you until your healing comes.  When you were sinking deep in sin, He provided forgiveness that delivered you time after time.  

 

So regardless of your circumstances, why not take a stand and say, "I WILL PRAISE THE LORD."  Trouble may be at your doorstep, but praise God anyhow; the bill collectors may be calling your house; but praise God anyhow; your friends may turn that backs on you but praise God anyhow.  Don't let the bad news of the day steal your joy, just make the commitment and say, "I WILL PRAISE THE LORD."