This has got to be the #1 reason God is worthy of our praise. He loves us so much, that He sent His Only Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Never mind all the time we spent ignoring Him, deliberately disobeying, etc. He STILL LOVES US! Who else do you know who could love all the inhabitants of planet earth so completely? Only God.
The best reason to praise
Do you and your spouse make a special effort to praise one another regularly? Have you always done that? What kinds of positive change have you seen in your marriage as result? Share your stories with us in the comments!
I agree Mike; read the article and keep the negative comments out. This is supposed to be an uplifting and helpful place to be. It seems like people are so quick to point out the negative, even more reason to live the suggestions in this article. Look for the positive, and continue to encourage!
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"If you were to come and watch any of the recitals oreven like the parades, you could just see it: That she's the best," Orsi says."Nothing compares to Adell's. Nothing. She's spot-on. The girls, you can justsee it in all the girls - how they dance - that it's from the coaching."
"She's the reason I'm here," Principe says. "I have mybachelor of science in psychology. I was doing this when she opened her studio.I hopped in to do just exercise; be part of it; continue dancing. And she threwa class at me here; a class at me there. And I ended up loving it, falling inlove with all the kids that we have. Especially our competitive ones are verydedicated. Even the rec kids, our recreation group, they come in ... they'recommitted. They're the harder working ones."
While dancing comes naturally to Adell, receiving suchpraise does not. In fact, the only time you'll see Adell anxious is when she'sreminded her students' dedication and devotion is because of her time andtalent.
"I make sure that what they do, and the time andeffort that they put in ... whatever it is, whether it be fundraising - I makesure that the kids get recognition," Adell says. "It's not about me as anowner. When you're a dancer, obviously you want that recognition for yourselfas a dancer. But now it's more about my kids, just because they're the onesthat - yeah, we put in long hours and lots of time and energy and sleeplessnights with the choreography and costumes and stuff like that - but our wholereason for that is them. I want them to be recognized for their hard work anddedication."
"If I'm considered the best, I would be honored andhumbled by that," she says. "I think that, when you feel like you knoweverything there is to know, that is when you're actually declining. So Ithink, especially in this business, you have to stay up to date on things.You're constantly learning. ... Somebody could always teach me something. ... Thisupcoming season will be my 20th year teaching, and I learn everyday - whetherit be a different formation change; whether it be a way to break something downto make it simpler to kids to pick up; whether it be standing in front of a kidthat needs to see it from that way or them watching. You learn constantly."
"And I'm very defensive. I'm very, very ... protectiveas far as how the studio is run and behavior in the studio and respect levels.Just because, to me, this is a safe place, and that's what I'm protective of,"Adell says. "Kids have bad days now for all different reasons. A 7-year-old, itcould be they got a 95 instead of a 100 on a test, where a 15-year-old'sparents are separating. You don't know. But this is the place that they cancome that nobody judges them. It doesn't matter what school they go to. Itdoesn't matter what their financial status is, or if they're low-income,middle-income, high-income. It doesn't matter."
As I slept last night dreams that caused fear came to me. I began to remember something that was buried deep within me.I cried out to God to help me. I heard with my spirit Worship is a weapon. I started thinking of times in the Bible where worship had defeated the enemy.This morning I found your site. Thank you for this message. I thank God. He deserves all praise and worship! God Bless
Objection 1. It would seem that God should not be praised with the lips. The Philosopher says (Ethic. 1,12): "The best of men ere accorded not praise, but something greater." But God transcends the very best of all things. Therefore God ought to be given, not praise, but something greater than praise: wherefore He is said (Sirach 43:33) to be "above all praise."
Objection 2. Further, divine praise is part of divine worship, for it is an act of religion. Now God is worshiped with the mind rather than with the lips: wherefore our Lord quoted against certain ones the words of Isaiah 29:13, "This people . . . honors [Vulgate: 'glorifies'] Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me." Therefore the praise of God lies in the heart rather than on the lips.
Objection 3. Further, men are praised with the lips that they may be encouraged to do better: since just as being praised makes the wicked proud, so does it incite the good to better things. Wherefore it is written (Proverbs 27:21): "As silver is tried in the fining-pot . . . so a man is tried by the mouth of him that praiseth." But God is not incited to better things by man's words, both because He is unchangeable, and because He is supremely good, and it is not possible for Him to grow better. Therefore God should not be praised with the lips.
I answer that, We use words, in speaking to God, for one reason, and in speaking to man, for another reason. For when speaking to man we use words in order to tell him our thoughts which are unknown to him. Wherefore we praise a man with our lips, in order that he or others may learn that we have a good opinion of him: so that in consequence we may incite him to yet better things; and that we may induce others, who hear him praised, to think well of him, to reverence him, and to imitate him. On the other hand we employ words, in speaking to God, not indeed to make known our thoughts to Him Who is the searcher of hearts, but that we may bring ourselves and our hearers to reverence Him.
Consequently we need to praise God with our lips, not indeed for His sake, but for our own sake; since by praising Him our devotion is aroused towards Him, according to Psalm 49:23: "The sacrifice of praise shall glorify Me, and there is the way by which I will show him the salvation of God." And forasmuch as man, by praising God, ascends in his affections to God, by so much is he withdrawn from things opposed to God, according to Isaiah 48:9, "For My praise I will bridle thee lest thou shouldst perish." The praise of the lips is also profitable to others by inciting their affections towards God, wherefore it is written (Psalm 33:2): "His praise shall always be in my mouth," and farther on: "Let the meek hear and rejoice. O magnify the Lord with me."
Reply to Objection 1. We may speak of God in two ways. First, with regard to His essence; and thus, since He is incomprehensible and ineffable, He is above all praise. On this respect we owe Him reverence and the honor of latria; wherefore Psalm 64:2 is rendered by Jerome in his Psalter [Translated from the Hebrew]: "Praise to Thee is speechless, O God," as regards the first, and as to the second, "A vow shall be paid to Thee." Secondly, we may speak of God as to His effects which are ordained for our good. On this respect we owe Him praise; wherefore it is written (Isaiah 63:7): "I will remember the tender mercies of the Lord, the praise of the Lord for all the things that the Lord hath bestowed upon us." Again, Dionysius says (Div. Nom. 1): "Thou wilt find that all the sacred hymns," i.e. divine praises "of the sacred writers, are directed respectively to the Blessed Processions of the Thearchy," i.e. of the Godhead, "showing forth and praising the names of God."
Reply to Objection 2. It profits one nothing to praise with the lips if one praise not with the heart. For the heart speaks God's praises when it fervently recalls "the glorious things of His works" [Cf. Sirach 17:7-8. Yet the outward praise of the lips avails to arouse the inward fervor of those who praise, and to incite others to praise God, as stated above.
Objection 1. It would seem that God should not be praised with song. For the Apostle says (Colossians 3:16): "Teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual canticles." Now we should employ nothing in the divine worship, save what is delivered to us on the authority of Scripture. Therefore it would seem that, in praising God, we should employ, not corporal but spiritual canticles.
Objection 2. Further, Jerome in his commentary on Ephesians 5:19, "Singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord," says: "Listen, young men whose duty it is to recite the office in church: God is to be sung not with the voice but with the heart. Nor should you, like play-actors, ease your throat and jaws with medicaments, and make the church resound with theatrical measures and airs." Therefore God should not be praised with song.
Objection 3. Further, the praise of God is competent to little and great, according to Apocalypse 14, "Give praise to our God, all ye His servants; and you that fear Him, little and great." But the great, who are in the church, ought not to sing: for Gregory says (Regist. iv, ep. 44): "I hereby ordain that in this See the ministers of the sacred altar must not sing" (Cf. Decret., dist. xcii., cap. On sancta Romana Ecclesia). Therefore singing is unsuitable to the divine praises.
Objection 4. Further, in the Old Law God was praised with musical instruments and human song, according to Psalm 32:2-3: "Give praise to the Lord on the harp, sing to Him with the psaltery, the instrument of ten strings. Sing to Him a new canticle." But the Church does not make use of musical instruments such as harps and psalteries, in the divine praises, for fear of seeming to imitate the Jews. Therefore in like manner neither should song be used in the divine praises. 2ff7e9595c
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