Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good (ELW 871)
1 Sing praise to God, the highest good,
The author of creation.
The God of love who understood
Our need for His salvation.
With healing balm our souls He fills
And ev’ry faithless murmur stills:
To God all praise and glory!
2 What God’s almighty pow’r has made,
In mercy He is keeping.
By morning glow or evening shade
His eye is never sleeping.
Within the kingdom of His might
All things are just and good and right:
To God all praise and glory!
3 We sought the Lord in our distress;
O God, in mercy hear us.
Our Savior saw our helplessness
And came with peace to cheer us.
For this we thank and praise the Lord,
Who is by one and all adored:
To God all praise and glory!
4 He never shall forsake His flock,
His chosen generation;
He is their refuge and their rock,
Their peace and their salvation.
As with a mother’s tender hand,
He leads His own, His chosen band:
To God all praise and glory!
5 All who confess Christ’s holy name,
Give God the praise and glory.
Let all who know His pow’r proclaim
Aloud the wondrous story.
Cast ev’ry idol from its throne,
For God is God, and He alone:
To God all praise and glory!
Devotion
I am one of those people who think singing makes the world a better place. As a young child I listened to my mother sing as she worked on household tasks. It was a joy to attend worship and hear the communal hymns. It was a greater joy when I could join in singing with her and the whole congregation.
Singing is still an important part of who I am. I love to sing joyful praises to God, especially when I can sing them along with others. The words in this hymn acknowledge the roles God has had since the beginning—creator, redeemer, healer, listener, merciful, savior—all of them directed for our benefit and for the world God so loves.
All of us as redeemed people, whether we have a voice for singing or not, are called to sing God’s praise. Come join with all those who confess Christ’s holy name, to give God the praise and glory.
Prayer
Joined together, we proclaim God’s saving power in thankfulness and praise. Amen.