Praise the Lord, my soul
by Neil Bergmann
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Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save (Psalm 146:3).
Read Psalm 146
Psalm 146 calls us to ‘Praise the LORD, my soul’. As you may well be aware, whenever we see ‘LORD’ in capitals in the Old Testament, this refers to the personal name of the God of the Israelites. So it is not just any God we praise; it is the God of Israel, the God we know as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The psalm also tells us why and how we should praise God. We should praise God with our souls. The Hebrew word translated here as ‘soul’ means our innermost being – the inner life force breathed into us by God. So, we praise God, not just with our thoughts and words, but with every part of our being and lives.
The psalm gives a list of reasons why we should praise God. We praise God because God is the creator of everything in heaven and earth, and God’s creation gives us everything we need to sustain our earthly life. God is faithful; God never deserts us. God reigns forever. We praise God because God cares for and loves those the world does not love. God upholds the oppressed. God provides food to the hungry. God sets the prisoners free. God lifts up those who are bowed down. God takes care of those who are lacking in the basics – the foreigners and refugees who have lost their homes, the fatherless and widows who have lost a stable income. God frustrates the ways of the wicked who seek to exploit and demean those in difficulty.
So, how do we praise God? If we expect that the political, social and economic systems of the world will fix inequality and oppression, then our trust is misplaced. Instead of human institutions, we put our hope in the LORD, our God. When we do this, we see the world through God’s eyes. We love what God loves. We love a beautiful but suffering creation. We love the oppressed, the poor, the helpless, the blind, the prisoners, the refugees and those who are bowed down. And this love is not a passive emotion – it is love in action. It is love that consumes our innermost being to work towards God’s kingdom of peace and justice. Praise the LORD, my soul.
Eternal God, creator of heaven and earth, we praise and adore you. Help us to love those whom you love, the ones the world thinks are unlovable. Let your kingdom come. Amen.
Neil Bergmann worships at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Rochedale, Queensland. He enjoys the quieter pace of life after retirement, being able to spend more time with his wife, Margit, and their daughter, Elina.
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