The book of Psalms became Israel’s worship liturgy. When we read the Psalms we see how Israel worshiped, not just the form but the substance as well. Throughout all of church history, the Psalms have played the same role.
Even in today’s worship music, the lyrics of the Psalms show up over and over again. Have you noticed how often you read the Psalms and find the lyrics of worship songs we sing today? This is God’s intent – the Psalms were given to us to show us how to worship. So what can we learn from the Psalms that we don’t already know?
Here is a shocker; there are almost 4 times as many psalms of lament as there are songs of thanksgiving. This means that God expects you to complain! And He encourages it! Wait a minute – God BBQed 20,000 Israelites because they complained about His food – how can you say He encourages complaining? Well, there’s a catch – you have to complain the right way.
Before we get to the “right way to complain” we need to know why He wants to hear your complaints. The reason is; because His goal for you and him is a RELATIONSHIP. Have you ever known someone who no matter what they were going through they said everything was fine? “Hey I heard your dog died and you lost your job”, “I’m fine”. Hey, I heard your wife just left you and your whole body broke out in a blue rash”, “I’m fine”. How deep does your relationship with that person go? The fact is; a relationship is only as deep as it is honest. And God wants a deep relationship with you- the deepest!