The Value of an Individual’s Praise

Psalm 30 is one of crying out to God for help. David, who wrote this psalm, had issues of dealing with enemies (v1), with sickness (v2), with depression (v7) or anxiety, and even believing he was near death (v3). In the middle of the psalm, David offers God an interesting reason for God to save him from his troubles (v8-10).

Basically, David asks God to save him because if He doesn’t, David will not be able to praise God any more. God is deserving of our praise, yes, but He also appreciates it. Does God need our praise? No. Jesus once said that if the nearby crowds were to stop praising Him, even the rocks would cry out in praise (Luke 19:37-40). God’s word tells us that creation itself declares the glory of God; that is, it praises Him (Psalm 19:1-4). So, is this passage from Psalm 30 contradictory? No, I think it shows that even one person’s heartfelt praise of God is precious to Him. David was saying that if he died and returned to dust, he couldn’t praise God. He was essentially telling God that he was valuable to God alive and well because he would praise God. Then David made good on his promise (v4, 11-12).

Are we as dedicated to praising God? Would it make a difference to God, and the worship and praise He deserves, whether we were alive or not? Let’s cultivate a life habit of regularly praising and worshiping God, so that in times of our distress we may, like David, cry out for mercy and appeal to God based on the honor and glory we have shown Him through a life of praise.

Author: Phil Greve

I have been leading worship since 2000; initially with a cross-country volunteer ministry team through Youth Encounter, then vocationally in churches in Orlando, FL and Mequon, WI; currently I serve two churches in Southeastern Wisconsin as a volunteer, leading worship 3 times a month on average. I have an amazingly supportive wife and two beautiful children. My church background is Lutheran, although I have been blessed to have spent a lot of time visiting other churches and developing strong relationships with Christians of various backgrounds and worship preferences over the years. I consider myself a Christian who practices in a Lutheran church. In addition to music ministry, I enjoy playing trumpet, the theater (watching and acting), and striving to be the best husband and father I can be. View all posts by Phil Greve