Observation: This simple, beautiful praise song lifts my heart on a Friday morning. At the end of a long week, with so much tragedy and fear in the world, it feels good to just know that God is good and to praise God. The psalm asks a common rhetorical question in the Bible, "Who is like the Lord our God?". The answer: nobody! Why? Because not only does God sit "higher" than any other--in knowledge, power, authority, influence, just to name a few--but crucially, God uses God's "highness" to lift up the lowest. The poor and needy, those experiencing infertility in a fertility-obsessed society, these are God's concern. God is uniquely worthy of praise not just because God is powerful, but because of how God uses power.
Application: Okay, I'm going to just say the word this brings to mind. Privilege. I know it's a word that's been getting a lot of attention lately, and not everyone agrees what it looks like. But I know, as a white, straight, English-speaking guy with a family, I have experienced it. It doesn't mean my life is easy, but it means that my race, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, and family status are not factors that make it harder. I did nothing "right" to earn this, just as nobody who doesn't have my same characteristics did anything "wrong" to not have them. It's just a reality. And I benefit from it.
So, I bring this up because of my faith. Because my faith says that God has more privilege and power than anybody, and God uses it to lift up those with less. In fact, my faith says that's what makes God unique. Nobody is like God, because pretty much everyone else takes full advantage of their power and privilege, to possibly get more. That's standard. God isn't. My faith says that's why I should praise God: The One on High who lifts up the lowly to sit with princes. Who is like God? Nobody.
But I guess if I acknowledge that God is good and worthy of praise, it makes sense to try and act a bit more like God in my daily life...right?
Prayer: God I praise you, because you sit on high but lift up the lowly. I praise you for your kindness and compassion, because you use your power to empower. Help me be like you. Amen.
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