INTRO: The things we do that God has inspired are WAY above what we would have done in our lives. He calls us His Jewels. God is actually talking about not beautiful jewels, but the LIGHT coming from them in the variety and brilliance of the light. He Created US to JOIN  H I M

Benefit Statement: What Does God do to Keep us Looking Positively at Things? It is specific and is key to attitude and HOW TO overcome worries and negativism. HOW to make God FIRST.

SPS: God enables removal of negativity, worries, and fear:  we have Positive Living WITH God

BODY: We need to be included into the REAL Creation, not the one Satan misleads us to see.

1. The Key is Praise

Hebrews 13:15-16 (NKJV) 15  Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. 16  But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Why would God command us to praise Him so much? This becomes as if we LIVE there.

Psalm 117:1-2 (NKJV) 1  Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples! 2  For His merciful kindness is great toward us, And the truth of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!

WHAT Does God get out of our praise? OR, what do WE get out of it? WE get basically EVERYTHING. This is part of God’s Loving Design to give us Spiritual awareness of REALITY.

“Praise” – to set a price or value on (appraise). Commending the value of someone or something, so you are “setting” the value of God to you. This is by actions or attributes of God. When we read a praise out of the Word, we go into the mind of God through a person’s eyes. This is a broader view of God and His actions and attributes. So, we GET to know God better and better and better as did those who wrote the praises.

God commands us to praise Him so we will have HUGE benefits as we come to know Him thoroughly and continually compared TO, but With us.

Jeremiah 9:23-24 (NKJV) 23  Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; 24  But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the LORD.

2. God lets us IN to His actual REALITY. What is REALLY happening right now? Think about Christ’s miracles being preceded by Him going to a quiet place. Did He pray about the Law? He prayed the Psalms which are Israel’s book of worship. The main thing or at least the number one subject which shows praise of God FIRST. (What you think about your mate is your future marriage).

When you look at all that is praise in the Psalms, you could title them “All About God”.

The benefits are many as it lowers your blood pressure since you pay less attention to distractions of self-guidance. This builds our faith …the trusting God to lead rather than our bumbling self-guidance. It is the starting place and we are told to offer the sacrifice of praise continually.

• We get to know God
• He gets to know YOU
• At some point in time it occurs that God is giving understanding or OUR Glory. Our Future.

3. We will see Christ as He is and BE like Him (1 Jn 3.2) . So, When we praise God, we “SEE” our future too!

Psalm 145:1-13 (NKJV) 1  I will extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever. 2  Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever. 3  Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable. 4  One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts. 5  I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works. 6  Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts, And I will declare Your greatness. 7  They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, And shall sing of Your righteousness. 8  The LORD is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy. 9  The LORD is good to all, And His tender mercies are over all His works. 10  All Your works shall praise You, O LORD, And Your saints shall bless You. 11  They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom, And talk of Your power, 12  To make known to the sons of men His mighty acts, And the glorious majesty of His kingdom. 13  Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And Your dominion endures throughout all generations.

Let’s “SEE” the Contrast to allowing God to reveal REALITY and give us True SIGHT. We MAY come to “SEE” Physical priority Blindness vs. TRUE Reality.

Ecclesiastes 1:1-18 (NKJV) 1  The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 2  "Vanity of vanities," says the Preacher; "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." 3  What profit has a man from all his labor In which he toils under the sun? 4  One generation passes away, and another generation comes; But the earth abides forever. 5  The sun also rises, and the sun goes down, And hastens to the place where it arose. 6  The wind goes toward the south, And turns around to the north; The wind whirls about continually, And comes again on its circuit. 7  All the rivers run into the sea, Yet the sea is not full; To the place from which the rivers come, There they return again. 8  All things are full of labor; Man cannot express it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, Nor the ear filled with hearing. 9  That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun. 10  Is there anything of which it may be said, "See, this is new"? It has already been in ancient times before us. 11  There is no remembrance of former things, Nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come By those who will come after. 12  I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13  And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised. 14  I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind. 15  What is crooked cannot be made straight, And what is lacking cannot be numbered. 16  I communed with my heart, saying, "Look, I have attained greatness, and have gained more wisdom than all who were before me in Jerusalem. My heart has understood great wisdom and knowledge." 17  And I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is grasping for the wind. 18  For in much wisdom is much grief, And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

Now let’s go BACK to realize that we DO NOT need to be blind in OUR self-guiding (Satan) priorities.

Psalm 145: 14-21 14  The LORD upholds all who fall, And raises up all who are bowed down. 15  The eyes of all look expectantly to You, And You give them their food in due season. 16  You open Your hand And satisfy the desire of every living thing. 17  The LORD is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works. 18  The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth. 19  He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them. 20  The LORD preserves all who love Him, But all the wicked He will destroy. 21  My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD, And all flesh shall bless His holy name Forever and ever.

• The Key is Praise
• God lets us IN to His actual REALITY. What is REALLY happening right now?
• When we praise God, we “SEE” our future too!

CLOSE:

Psalm 107:31-32 (NKJV) 31  Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 32  Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders.

Psalm 107:41-43 (NKJV) 41  Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, And makes their families like a flock. 42  The righteous see it and rejoice, And all iniquity stops its mouth. 43  Whoever is wise will observe these things, And they will understand the loving kindness of the LORD.

God Reveals REALITY through Praise of HIM with US …THAT’S POSITIVE Living With God