Weekly Devotional: February 4, 2026

GOD’S WORD
Psalm 33, Jeremiah 29:11

DEVOTIONAL BY
Rick Raymer, Major
Former Offficer Pastoral Care / Spiritual Life Development Resource Officer

"PRAISE YE THE LORD. HALLELUJAH!"

Psalm 33:6-9 (NLT)
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
their starry host by the breath of His mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;
He puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the people of the world revere Him.
For He spoke, and it came to be;
He commanded, and it stood firm.

Many Biblical Scholars call Psalm 33 a psalm of praise, urging believers to sing and rejoice in God's power and goodness, emphasizing His creation, sovereignty, and care for His people. It highlights God's ability to bring about His purpose and the importance of trusting in Him rather than human strength or plans. And never forget that His plans He has for each of us are plans for good and not for disaster, to give each of us a future and a hope which is steadfast and sure. (Jeremiah 29:11)

A CALL TO PRAISE

This psalm begins with a call to praise God with instruments and singing, emphasizing the joy and importance of praising Him.

This call to praise David is talking about is with all we’ve got! That’s with all our instruments and every voice lifting up praise to our God - with all our being! It’s like a TMI concert where they pull out all the stops and showcase every musical talent through brass bands, stringed instruments, percussions, songsters, soloists, duets, creative dancing, the arts, and so much more. And all of it is done to honor, worship and praise God while sharing with others the Gospel message, through music and the spoken Word.

SINGING A SONG OF PRAISE

I love the pen of Fanny Crosby as she writes her poems and songs, and boy did she pen a lot of them! According to Wikipedia, it could be as many as 9,000 songs and poems, with over 100 million copies of her songs and poems printed. Most of them speak about seeing, and she wrote ALL of them as a blind person who was sold out - hook, line and sinker - to her Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.  

“Praise Him! Praise Him!,”
written by Fanny Crosby, is one of my favorites. I love the lyrics to this song and the tune which makes you want to get up and dance:

Praise Him! Praise Him! Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
Sing, O earth– His wonderful love proclaim!
Hail Him! Hail Him! highest archangels in glory;
strength and honor give to His holy name!
Like a shepherd, Jesus will guard His children;
in His arms He carries them all day long.

Chorus
Praise Him! Praise Him! Tell of His excellent greatness.
Praise Him! Praise Him ever in joyful song!

Praise Him! Praise Him! Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
Heav’nly portals loud with hosannas ring!
Jesus, Savior, reigneth forever and ever.
Crown Him! Crown Him! Prophet, and Priest, and King!
Christ is coming, over the world victorious;
pow’r and glory unto the Lord belong! 

"Blessed Assurance" - is another great song written by Fanny Crosby:

Perfect submission, perfect delight,
visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
angels descending, bring from above
echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Chorus
This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long;
this is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Savior am happy and blest;
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

I could give you lyric after lyric of Fanny Crosby’s songs or poems and you would see over and over that she wrote about seeing, watching, looking, visions, portals, and on and on, all with a sense of praise to her Heavenly Father. She loved her Lord above anything and everything. He was first place in her heart and because of that it was a part of her DNA, which gave her the passion to constantly praise her Lord.

GODS POWER AND CREATION

Psalm 33: 6-9 highlights God's creative power, emphasizing that He spoke the heavens and earth into existence, and His Word holds everything together. This is the God we serve! I pray that you spend time in praise to Him, the King of Kings and not just when you gather for collective worship but throughout your days. Praise God for waking you up in the morning and for the night of rest. Praise God for His provisions. Praise God for your family and friends. Praise Him for His goodness, forgiveness, mercy, love and grace.

Psalm 150
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
Praise him in his mighty heaven!
Praise him for his mighty works;
Praise his unequaled greatness!
Praise him with a blast of the ram’s horn;
Praise him with the lyre and harp!
Praise him with the tambourine and dancing;
Praise him with strings and flutes!
Praise him with a clash of cymbals;
Praise him with loud clanging cymbals.
Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

If you feel like it, get the pots and pans and let’s clang them together in praise to our Heavenly Father. Nothing is off the table! As the Psalmist said, let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord! The King James version puts the last verse this way:  “Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.”

Bottom line for you and I is praise ye the Lord! Hallelujah! Just like the round we used to sing in Sunday School:

Hallelu! Hallelu! Hallelu! Hallelujah!
Praise ye the Lord!
Hallelu! Hallelu! Hallelu! Hallelujah!
Praise ye the Lord!
Praise ye the Lord! Hallelujah!
Praise ye the Lord! Hallelujah!
Praise ye the Lord! Hallelujah!
Praise ye the Lord!

Let’s praise the Lord from the very depths of our souls and give it all to Him, for He is worthy to be praised!

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OUR CORPORATE PRAYER
Heavenly Father, we lift our hearts to You in adoration and praise, inspired by the truth of Your Word. We thank You for Your Word. Like You, it is utterly right and true. It is a firm foundation upon which we can build our lives, a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. We find comfort and guidance in its unwavering certainty.

We also praise You for Your unfailing character, for You are faithful in all You do. Your promises are sure, Your actions are just, and Your love endures forever. We stand in awe of Your consistency and reliability, knowing that we can always count on You. We celebrate Your love for righteousness and justice. You are a God of integrity, and Your heart delights in what is good and fair. We leave our all in Your care and we praise You. In the name of Jesus, amen.