Prayers of Altitude

Exalt the LORD our God and worship at His footstool; He is holy.   Psalm 99:5

Exalt – “See Him high and lifted up.”  Yes, songs can also be prayers.  The Old Testament sees no distinction between songs of praise and prayers of exultation.  We need to blur that distinction too, for prayers that rejoice in the Lord and lift up His name are often jubilant and melodious expressions.  Go ahead.  Sing a prayer to God.

Contemporary churches might seem less entertainment if we just became more Hebrew.  The artificial distinctions we place on religious activities would be erased.  We would discover that prayer spills over from prostrate confession to exuberant singing.  We might even dance before the Lord (careful now J).  With kairos attention, we would suddenly see God’s hand in the strangest places, like parking lots and choir rooms, street corners and budget meetings.  Any place we can lift up God becomes an act of impassioned prayer.

David danced naked before the Lord.  He was soundly criticized.  Today he would probably be excommunicated or arrested.  We have become so civilized that we have forgotten we serve a dangerous and unpredictable God.  Just look at His record – leveling a city with a shout, fighting an army with a handful of men (or even one), sending a messenger who ate locust and, finally, bringing redemption through a Son who was tortured and died.  God is always surprising.  When David says, Rom mu, he emphasizes God’s magnificence.  He shouts it out.  “There is no One like You, O Lord!”  David is on the top of the mountain with the God of the heavens.  I can see him, hands raised, shouting, stomping, jumping, singing at the top of his lungs, making a spectacle of himself – because the glory of God has overwhelmed all his restraint.

Ever pray like that?  You would be in good company.  Set aside all those inhibitions that come with civilized prayer.  Go for God’s gusto.  Make a joyful noise to the Lord.  You might even hear Him laughing and dancing along with you.