how to change your focal length: part 2

“Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live.” Psalm 63:3-4

In this series, we’re looking at different aspects of ‘praise’ and how each one helps us to change our focal length. We all have a natural inclination to be focused on the things around us, on the things we see and think about - and sometimes, this isn’t the best. If, as worshippers, we can learn how to focus less on ourselves and more on the object of our worship, we can change the world. But how to do that isn’t always obvious.

I believe that praise is a key, and that’s what these next few posts are about. But what do we mean by ‘praise’? What does the Bible call praise? Are there any tips that might help us practically start to live lives with a clearer focus? How can praise help us to do this?

There are a few words for praise: there’s one that’s used 140 times in the Old Testament, and it’s a cracker: it’s the word ‘halal’.

Not the meat. That’s from an Arabic word meaning ‘lawful’ which is now used to describe food that’s fit for Muslims to eat. This halal is a Hebrew word that means: to boast, to rave, to shine, or, indeed, to act crazy.

I think the point of ‘halal’ is that praise is supposed to be loud and it’s supposed to be visible. It’s the same kind of word you’d use to describe that cheer you do without thinking when your team score, or you get a promotion, or you accidentally win the lottery. It’s a natural, reflex response to something incredible, and it can’t be stopped.

You can see that in Psalm 63. Halal erupts in response to God. There’s a reason, there’s a cause, there’s a truth to what’s happened and I am not going to stop shouting about it!

Halal also means to shine. In Philippians, Paul instructs the church to ‘do everything without complaining or arguing’ and specifically says that the result is that we will ‘shine like stars in the universe, as we hold out the word of truth’. He knows that there’s a direct connection between our character and our ability to shine. Complaining, arguing, grumbling... seems to be a quick way to flicker out from a brilliant example, into a lacklustre Christian. So stop it. Halal instead!

Praise is meant to shine. It’s intended to tell the loudest and best of who God is, the most of what he’s done, to speak the highest good into a situation, like a light that switches on in the dark. It’s powerful, it’s illuminating, it’s brilliant.

Here’s the challenge then. Next time you get an opportunity, tell a story about what God has done for you. It could be a ‘testimony’ in church, or it could just be a facebook status. But try boasting, going over the top about what God did! Let it shine! Tell the world who he is and and how much he showed his love to you! Really go for it. Make it burst out from inside of you like a ‘halal’ should.

If you find that difficult, try writing it down first. Make it a ‘halaletter’. One thing I do sometimes (I like writing) is to write out a good story about what God did, and then go back and circle the number of times I mentioned myself and then the number of times I mentioned him. I find that a really interesting challenge, and it usually tells me something about where my focal length is. The point is that doing this, slowly rearranges the way we think about what God has done, and ultimately prompts that spontaneous burst of joy and praise, the next time we see it.

Halal can change your focus because it is a natural, uncontrolled, outrageous response to God. Let it go. Let it out. Let it shine!