I Will Extol Thee, O Lord;

Psalm 30:1
1I will extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.

Monday mornings are always portrayed as a hard day to get rolling. I guess after a long weekend of playing, traveling, working around the house can keep us from a little rest.

I believe that it is because we are continually tired our enemy gets the upper hand to knock us off our feet. The Psalmist is cheering for a great victory that God has rewarded him with. We would do well to imitate the Psalmist by our praise for God's loving care upon us;

I will extol thee, O Lord;

The word extol is a word you do not hear in common, everyday conversations. I looked it up and discovered it is a very rich word packed with a lot of feeling! The word extol is defined like this: To praise highly, laud, eulogize!

We should schedule a time, every day to extol the Lord. I think that most Christians, praise the Lord occasionally, but to kick it up a notch and elevate our praise to the "Highly" level takes a lot more of our time and effort. I am glad the Psalmist goes on to give us a couple of great reasons to "Highly Praise" the Lord.

We should laud the Lord! the word "laud" means to sing a hymn or song of praise to the Lord! Part of extolling the Lord involves the "New" song in praise to the Lord. A hymn of praise should be written on our hearts, ready to burst forth at a moments notice!

We are to "eulogize" the Lord! We associate the word "eulogize" with words spoken at a funeral! The word "eulogize" has a definition to "Praise Highly" so we have come full circle and a double reminder to praise the Lord for all He is, and all He does for us!

For thou hast lifted me up,

"Fallen man" is a terrible indictment. It describes the exact state we are in! Every human is in the same boat, when we measure our puny existence to the magnificence of the Lord God Almighty, we pale in comparison. I get excited to think the Lord would take the time to lift me up. Lifting me up is what the Lord does best, because I constantly fall flat. Like a toddler learning to walk, falling down, and getting lifted back up to our feet is the process!

The Lord is gracious to us, with his gentle hand lifting us up, back on our feet to face the prospects of the day! That alone should squeeze our heart to utter praise to the Lord!

And hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.

The Psalmist realized that the Lord had protected him, even while he was flat on his back! We should relish the comfort the Lord gives us in His protection! The enemy will never rejoice over my fallen state because I am hid in the Lords hands!

Monday's are not so bad! For me it is a fresh start to an exciting week in service to my King! A week that will be productive, and protected! A week of the Lord taking care of me no matter my flub ups! I will win, with the Lord on my side!