Guest Author

I am delighted to share my blog with my friend, Sharla Fritz, to whom I was introduced by our mutual friend, Gail Ficken. Please join me in welcoming Sharla's writings to my blog.

Sharla Fritz loves to communicate the transforming power of Christ's love and grace. Her own spiritual makeover began when she was very young and she rejoices that because of Jesus, her heart is always in style. She is passionate about helping other women enhance the beauty of their souls.

Sharla is a Christian speaker and author of Divine Design: 40 Days of Spiritual Makeover. The book is a “What Not to Wear” manual for the soul, encouraging women to get rid of unattractive mind-sets like the handbag of worry and the prom dress of pride and to embrace God-pleasing attitudes. Check out her website at www.sharlafritz.comand her blog at http://sharlafritz.blogspot.com

Instead of Boasting—Praise!

Instead of boasting, I am learning to praise! 

And especially--to praise God.

This is not something I am naturally good at. I love to read the Bible, but my prayer life is not always all it should be. And then when I do pray, my prayers often morph into a wish list for myself and my loved ones.

This week I want to concentrate on praising God. So I asked myself a few questions:

• Why should we praise God? He already knows everything and so He also knows that He is loving, strong, just, merciful, patient... Then I thought of how I feel when I receive a compliment. Suddenly my mood lifts, the world seems brighter, the sky seems bluer. Maybe praising God also makes His day!
• How do we praise? Praise is to express admiration of God's character and glory. It is not thanking Him for things He has done for us, although that is also a good thing to do. Praise statements begin with, "Lord, you are..."
• What should we praise God for? When we are reading God's Word, we can look for references to God attributes and praise Him for those.

Here are a few to get you started:

• Lord, I praise You because You are faithful.

"Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands". Deuteronomy 7:9

• Lord, I praise you because You are loving.

"And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him." 1 John 4:16

• Lord, I praise You because You are merciful.

"But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God." Nehemiah 9:31

• Lord, I praise You because You are my Burden Bearer.

"Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens." Psalm 68:19 

Praise the Lord today!