From the Rising of the Sun

As many Psalms do, this Psalm (Psalm 113) begins and ends with the imperative “Praise the Lord.” It is the wonderful truths book-shelved between these words that are the anchored purpose for that very praise. And don’t forget―verbal praise is only one form of worship as everything we do is worship in that the way we live is the greatest form of total response to a self-revealing, pursuing God.

It begins by setting the boundaries on earth of that praise, “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.” These words are not referring to the time frame of worship, per se, but the location. Of course we should worship God constantly in all we do, but the point here is basically that if you happen to live somewhere on planet earth (between the east and the west, the locations of sunrise and sunset), you should be praising him.

It is only natural that the Psalm moves in v. 4 to the incredible God who just happens to be exalted by his very nature over all of this world between the “east and the west” that explains the need for the praise to cover every location, every blade of grass, every drop of ocean water and every human heart in the wondrous proclamation of praise to our Creator.

And his love and grace is seen in the concluding verses as this God of ours does not forget us and our lowly plight as he stoops to engage us and rescue us in every need, letting the poverty-stricken walk with princes.

And he is the God of life, for he can and has blessed the childless woman with the beautiful miracle of the newborn.

We worship a truly awesome God. As he rules his Creation with majesty, mystery and wonder, we respond to him and his passionate pursuit of us in adoration and praise!

Praise the Lord!

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Psalm 113

1 Praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord, you his servants; praise the name of the Lord. 2 Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. 3 From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.4 The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. 5 Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, 6 who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?7 He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; 8 he seats them with princes, with the princes of his people. 9 He settles the childless woman in her home as a happy mother of children.

Praise the Lord.

Psalm 113 NIV

©2018 by Ben Bounds. All rights reserved.

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We can come to know Christ through confession of our sins and repentance (turning away from sin). Let me encourage you to do this by talking to God through prayer. Here is an idea of how you might do that:

"Dear God, I believe your son Jesus Christ died in my place on the cross and rose from the dead on the third day following his death. I confess my sins, all of them, to you now with a humble heart. I repent of those sins and ask you to empower me with your Holy Spirit in overcoming further sin. Amen”

If you prayed this or a similar prayer committing your life to Christ and becoming one of his followers, let me encourage you to find a good, Bible-believing church.

Begin talking to God in prayer and reading the Bible daily. A good way to begin to read the Bible is to start with the Book of John in the New Testament.

Feel very free in connecting with me if you need any further help in your walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. You can do this via the above email or facebook page or this web page.

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Mercy Road Ministries was founded and now led by Ben Bounds. Ben has pastored churches across Texas for over thirty years and is an ordained minister with the Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA). He holds a BA in Pastoral Ministry and Biblical Studies from Southwestern Assemblies of God College and did graduate theological studies at the BMA Theological Seminary.

Ben's first book, The Divine Chase: Responding to a Pursuing God, was released on 12.08.2017 through Westbow Press, a division of Thomas Nelson and Zondervan. It is available in paperback and hardback through your preferred bookseller (Mardels, Barnes and Noble, etc.) and paperback, hardback as well as ebook through online book retailers (www.christianbook.com, www.cokesbury.com, www.amazon.com, www.booksamillion.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, etc.).

Ben is the host of Staying in Bounds, an on-air Bible devotional broadcast multiple times daily on KWJV 103.7 FM Weslaco, TX which can also be heard worldwide online at www.kwjvthestar.com. Ben and his wife, Linda, together have four adult children and nine grandchildren. They live in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

Ben can be contacted for preaching engagements at benbounds695@gmail.com or 903.441.3279. Ben can also be contacted via his website @ www.benbounds.com, which is also his blog and contains more information about his ministry.

Follow Ben @ https://www.facebook.com/mercyroadministries/ and this website www.benbounds.com.