Leader, have your group spend some time praising God by using the following Scriptures and prayer of praise. Assign the Scriptures to people in your group and have them read them in order. Then you conclude the time of praise by reading the written prayer. You could also sing a couple of praise songs, such as: Shout to the Lord, Ancient of Days, There is none like You, Lord I lift Your Name on High.
I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1-2
I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together. Psalm 34:1-3
Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth! Psalm 47:1-2
I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth. Psalm 57:9-11
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder. For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. And he will reign forever and ever! Isaiah 9:2-6
In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. There, You, Lord Jesus, were given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped You. Your dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and Your kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. Daniel 7:13-14
But still You, who is God, did not demand and cling to Your rights as God, but laid aside Your mighty power and glory, taking the disguise of a slave and becoming like us. And You humbled yourself even further, going so far as actually to die a criminal's death on a cross. Yet it was because of this that God raised You up to the heights of heaven and gave You the name which is above every other name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:6-11
Let's pray.
Many things, thoughts, emotions have consumed us Lord. Some were worthy things; some were not so noble. Bombarded with constant noise, nagging demands and busy schedules we have neglected to praise You. We have missed the wonder of loving You and we have missed the joy of your goodness. So often when we are self-consumed it's hard to find your face and even harder to look into Your eyes. Our spirits long for our once close relationship to be restored.
We will praise You. We will unclench our fists that we so often raise in personal rebellion. Sometimes we don't understand Your ways … indeed, they are too high for us. So we will not raise defiant fists, but instead we will lift up open hands in total surrender … We give ourselves to You. There are times we don't have much Lord, but even when we are running on empty we can offer You our willingness, our free choice. And, we are ready Lord to receive that which You offer to us.
In simple praise our spirit sings of Your great mercies. We are thankful for the many times we were protected from those who would harm us and mostly from the harm we would cause ourselves. Your great compassion has covered our poor choices and Your mercy has covered many of those things that were simply out of our control.
Praise You, Lord. You are forgiving, You are holy, You are gracious. Your love never ends and it never ceases to amaze us. We pause now to say thank You for the many wonderful things in our lives. We worship You for You are the Mighty God worthy of our praise. We applaud You for the good work You have begun in our lives. Humbly, we ask You to continue that work. Love us, mold us, make us completely Yours. Amen
