By Alex Cain    

C.S. Lewis points out one such wrong-headed idea when he admits that he used to mistakenly view the Bible’s demands for praising God as no different than a conceited woman seeking compliments. Every time he heard the Psalms saying “praise the Lord,” “praise God,” or “praise Him,” God sounded pathetically vain to him. In his book, Reflections on the Psalms(p. 93 ff.), Lewis explains how his perspective changed:

“…the most obvious fact about praise—whether of God or anything—strangely escaped me. I thought of it in terms of compliment, approval, or the giving of honor. I had never noticed that all enjoyment spontaneously overflows into praise unless shyness or the fear of boring others is deliberately brought in to check it.”

“The world rings with praise—readers [praising] their favorite poet, walkers praising the countryside, players praising their favorite game... Just as men praise whatever they value, so they spontaneously urge us to join them in praising it: ‘Isn’t she lovely? Wasn’t it glorious? Don’t you think that magnificent?’ The Psalmists, in telling everyone to praise God, are doing what all men do when they speak of what they care about.”

“My difficulty about the praise of God depended on my absurdly denying to us what we delight to do, what indeed we can't help doing, about everything else we value. I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses, but completes the enjoyment.”

 If it’s true that worship springs naturally from within a person and is expressed by praising that which he or she enjoys most, then what or whom do you find yourself praising?

A Prayer for a Heavy Heart    

Father, my heart is heavy. I feel like I have to carry the burden alone. Words like overwhelmed, distraught, exhausted seem to describe where I am. I am not sure how to let you carry my heavy load, so please show me how. Take it from me. Let me rest and be refreshed so that my heart won't be so heavy in the morning. In Jesus' name. Amen. - Ron Moore

By Kevin, Texas (USA)   
Depression    

At one point in my life, I struggled with depression and a low sense of self-worth. Is life really worth living when I’ll always be so mediocre? I asked myself. I had been going to church only 
sporadically, so my mother insisted I start going regularly. Early on, I heard a sermon about how we were all created in God’s image and are pleasing to God. After the service, I attended a small group where people talked openly about issues they were dealing with. When I shared my depression and feelings of worthlessness, I was surprised to discover that many people were dealing with the same issues.
God seemed to be speaking through me as I told them that I would always be there for any of them who needed me. Every week since then, I have been helping the people in the group. I think maybe I’ve discovered my special gift, which is helping others. Now I’m pursuing a doctorate in psychology. I’ve learned that — at just the right time — God will show each of us our particular gift of service.