Send to Kindle

by Robin McKinley

I love to sit outside on the deck behind my house to write. As I am writing this devotional post I can hear, very loudly I might mention, cicadas singing in the trees. This is the summer they have emerged from the ground. They will mate and die with their offspring returning to us in about 17 years. The Psalmist said, let every created thing give praise to the Lord.  

 Cicadas can produce their sounds because they possess an organ that is almost unique among insects. It’s called the tymbal organ. These small insects can only praise the Lord a few weeks every 17 years. We can praise Him every day.

Praise the Lord!  Psalm 148:1

The writer of this Psalm began and ended it with the words, Praise the Lord! Between those two phrases, he divided this chapter into two sections. The first one says . . .

Praise the Lord from the heavens! Praise him from the skies! Psalm 148:1 

Let Every Created Thing in the Heavens Praise the Lord 

He said every flying thing must praise the Lord. The next time you are in an airplane, take time to praise the Lord. The Psalmist went even higher in the sky than the heights we are aware of. He spoke about the heavenly beings in the very next verse.

Praise him, all his angels! Praise him, all the armies of heaven! Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you twinkling stars! Psalm 148:2-3

Further than the eye can see, God is being praised. Noises have been detected in outer space that can only be a result of the stars offering praise to their creator. That statement isn’t far-fetched. Look at what the writer said next.

Let every created thing give praise to the Lord, for he issued his command, and they came into being. He set them in place forever and ever. His decree will never be revoked. Psalm 148:5-6

Let Every Created Thing on the Earth Praise the Lord 

God receives praise from creatures of the ocean depths. Some of those created beings live so deep in the waters, they have never seen the light of day. Yet they offer praise to the Lord. 

Even fire and hail, snow and clouds praise Him. I like to sit on our front porch and watch a rainstorm go by. Yet I never looked at those storms as a praise to the Lord. Their power and fury are just samples of the majestic power of our Lord.

God receives praise from wild animals and all livestock, small scurrying animals and birds. Then the Psalmist mentioned people.

 . . . kings of the earth and all people, rulers and judges of the earth, young men and young women, old men and children. Psalm 148:11-12 

 We are all mandated to offer praise unto the Lord. If we turn to Psalm 150, it says, Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord! Are you breathing?

One time the Pharisees asked Jesus to tell the people to quiet down from praising Him. His response was, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!” I don’t know about you, but I don’t want the stones to do any praising for me.

The writer in Psalm 148, covered who should praise the Lord. Everything in the heavens, the skies, and the on earth. Then he made this blanket statement.

Let them all praise the name of the Lord. For his name is very great; his glory towers over the earth and heaven! Psalm 148:13

Lord, we are in awe of how all of your creation praises you. From the stars above to the cicadas in the trees. We will not be left out. Receive praise from our lips as we offer it to you.

About the Author: 

Robin, with his wife Cindy, became children’s evangelists early in their ministry. They ministered to children full time for 8 years. During that time they developed several children’s stories which were told with visuals and puppets.

Robin recently turned two of those stories into children’s books. One is called “The Contest,” a book about the Fruit of the Spirit, and the other is called “Twas the Night of Christmas”. He has also authored 5 volumes of devotional books called, 3 Minutes Alone with God. Each entry is a product of his personal biblical Journaling.

These and his other writings are available on his website called Christian Perspectives at www.ramckinley.com. When you visit this site, you can sign-up for newly written devotions as they come out which will be emailed to you. 

Presently Robin is the pastor of Calvary Christian Center in Pottstown, PA. He is an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God. He and his wife make their home in Birdsboro, Pa. He also serves as the president of the local ministerium. He and Cindy have two married sons and four grandchildren.