How sweet life is with our heavenly father. To he who tastes it, would never cease to give thanks and praise. Praise is originally the work of the angels, it is their language in heaven, it is the language of love, and it is their nourishment, enjoyment, and their delight. Therefore, when we participate with them in praise, we enter into a lovely fellowship with the heavenly and a true experience of the heavenly life.
The sacrifice of praise is a fulfillment of our debt:
My beloved, we are indebted to God for everything in our lives; our existence, our health, capabilities, talents, positions, salvation, and our lives. Therefore, there is nothing more important than to continuously praise Him and give thanks to Him. If we keep on praising and giving thanks to Christ all our lives for His great work with us, we will never duly repay Him.
Listen to David the prophet, saying, “You broke apart my bonds. I will offer a sacrifice of praise.” (Psalm 115 Prayer of the ninth hour-116 NKJ). He sees God's work with him and offers to Him a sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise for His love, despite that what David had obtained doesn’t even compare to the redemption that we obtained on the cross. Therefore, the Bible commands us in New Testament to continuously offer sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving to Christ our Redeemer, “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.” (Hebrews 13:15).
Practical Exercise:
1 – Be keen on having a daily devotion for praise, singing, and thanksgiving. This is a great sacrifice that gladdens God's heart, and will also fill your heart with joy and gladness.
2 - Start by learning the church praise, in Coptic and English, for it is an invaluable treasure. This will help you to offer daily sacrifices of praise to He who loved us and redeemed us. Thus you become like the heavenly ones who offer praise to our Lord Jesus, saying: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing… For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood” (Rev. 5).
3 - During the Divine Liturgy, make sure to focus on prayers and do not stay silent as a spectator, but rather participate with the congregations by your tongue and your heart in the hymns, responses, and various praises so that you may enjoy the pleasure of the fellowship with Christ.
The Divine Liturgy is the most enjoyable moments in life, for Christ offers himself on the altar out of His love for us, and we give Him the sacrifice of praise from all of our hearts. Here we attain harmony and spiritual delight.
Blessed is he who lives with this mindset every day of his life.
