Psalm 119:164

Psalm 119:164 “Seven times a day I praise You for Your righteous laws.”
 

We do not know whether David literally praised God seven times a day or not. That really is not the issue, anyway. The issue is that he had a priority of praising God for His laws. In Psalm 34:1 we read, “I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips.” Obviously, David is expressing a pattern of life in this verse rather than something literal. 

No one would be able to praise God every waking moment of the day. However, one could become so pleasing to God that their very life becomes a praise to God. In either case, what we find is that David never lost his heart of praise.
 

In the New Testament, we are encouraged to “pray without ceasing.” It would be very difficult at best (if not impossible) to maintain a continual state of prayer. However, it is possible to develop a lifestyle of prayer. It is possible for us to develop a “praying heart”  to where prayer is a permanent part of our life. It may not be that of praying every waking moment of our life, but it is that of having a God-consciousness about our self so that our life becomes more, and more of a life of praying always.
 

David had a heart of praise. Seven times a day he would set aside time to praise God for His righteous laws. Throughout this Psalm, the word “law” is used as the translation of the word “teach.” David would praise God for the things he was taught by God. The things God teaches us, become laws in our lives. 

To develop a heart of praise, we must purposely praise God for His teachings, also. Do we realize we would not have life if it were not for His laws (teachings)? A person would be wise to read the Proverbs, and each time we find something that gives is advice, praise God for it. If we did this seven times a day, it would change our lives. 

Now let me encourage you to take some time to meditate on this verse, as you do; ask yourself if you ever really take time to praise God for His laws. 

Continued