Anatomy of Praise

by Dr. Lamont E. Ricks

Praise is defined as the expression of worth given, gratitude and adoration and appreciation to another. In this new series, Dr. Lamont takes this to share what the basic biblical understanding of the Anatomy of Praise. He shares that in life as Believers, praise is born out of our:

  • P – Pain as a result of unadvised, bad or wrong choices we’ve made over the years in our life.
  • R – Regrets from those choices. We wished we had made different decisions, went in a different direction or a different relationship. Maybe this would have turned our differently and would not have to regret them.
  • A – Abandonment which came for people who we once shared but no longer communicate. Abandoned by our family, friends and other close associates for known and unknown reason. We are left at a lost and seemingly have no answers to the question why.
  • I – Isolation from help you need and from answers you want. The overwhelming feeling of being alone and somewhat distant from life and all the vital necessary elements for living.
  • S – Setbacks. We were on a roll and all of a sudden, with no warning things changed. It wasn’t anything in particular we did wrong or any sin we committed, things and changed for the worse. Now we have to regroup and make some unplanned adjustments that will cost us most time and unwanted energy
  • E – Expectation, we were expecting “a” and ended up “x” from God. Its not that there is too much wrong with “x” but we were looking, and greatly anticipating and planning for “a”. then came disappointment.

The P-R-A-I-S-E we have in our heart is rooted in the various life experiences we have. The anatomy of praise is structured and built from the Pain, Regrets, times of Abandonment, moments of Isolation, varied Setbacks and unfulfilled Expectations that we all can relate to. God wants us to know we have his word as the source of our comfort and hope to bring a a genuine and authentic expression of praise.

Unconditional Praise – How can we trust God when we are consumed in panic? Often times we can find ourselves in a state of panic due to the overwhelming pressures of our world and our desire to live for the Lord.

In today’s Pulpit Points message, Dr. Lamont shared the things in our life that can bring about panic and how we can experience a praise that is unconditional

Transitional Praise – In a continuation of his teaching series “The Anatomy of  Praise”, Dr. Lamont E. Ricks, shares today the whats and why for “Transitional Praise“. Sometimes in our walk with the Lord, we are going to be overwhelmed and it seems as through we cannot muster up enough strength to give God praise.

But in today’s message, Moses and the children are caught in the proverbial “rock and a hard place” scenario. After leaving Egypt and from under the hard taskmaster’s hand of the Pharaoh, Israel escaped only to  run into a wall know as the Red Sea. For over four hundreds year, Pharaoh handed the Israelites, task after task, lashing after lashing to build his empires. But God heard their cries and rescued them. when the came to the Red Sea, they demonstrated the attitude and mindset we are encouraged to display when we are compassed with woes on every side – Transitional Praise

Total Praise – From the life experience of Abraham (Gen. 22:1-18), Dr. Lamont shares the word regarding”Total Praise”. Total Praise is: 1) Directly Correlated to Our Relationship with God 2) Grounded in UNSHAKABLE Expectations 3) The Gateway to UNIMAGINABLE Blessings Total Praise is the offering up to the Lord our God the praises he deserves. This praise is not an offering with words or lip service but rather something deeper. It requires us to examine our life through the things we hold the closest. The Lord wants us to grow to a point where He means more to us than the things of this world. Abraham, proved to God that nothing, not even his only son was more than giving him praise if that’s what he wanted. When praise, Total Praise demands a sacrifice, give it up to the Lord your God.

Unusual Praise –  We who are born-again “usually can find a reason to praise the Lord our God. We look typically at the good things God has done in our lives, in the lives of others or the things He delivered us from. WE can call it usual because it flows automatically when we are expecting our so-called break-through or in our attempt to receive that break-through. But is God’s wisdom, we cannot wait for a break-through to happen because it may not come when we want it too. It may not come at all (Hebrews 11:13) . It is in times like these we have the opportunity to offer up what Dr. Lamont Ricks, calls Unusual Praise.

Ultimate Praise