My Altar of Praise
by Annalene Holtzhausen
Every once in a while, one reads a familiar verse from a different perspective, which in turn brings new understanding to a situation you may be facing. Today’s verse did exactly that by bringing truth to something I had actually been overthinking. To be honest, I had taken offence at something said during a conversation. I was wrestling with my reaction and asking the Lord why the words spoken had upset me so much. What were they triggering in me?
During a church service, our pastor had a similar message, and ended the service by asking two questions. Who are you upset or angry with? What does the person owe you? The option was then given to let go of the toxic cycle of thoughts by not allowing a grudge to build up inside ourselves. We can choose to give it to God, instead of placing an expectation on to the person for what we feel they owe us. Asking the Lord what it was that I felt was owed to me, He directed my thoughts, and I could work through my reaction with more understanding.
All these thoughts were brought together when we sang a beautiful song by Cody Carnes, ‘Christ Be Magnified’. Here are some of the lyrics that stood out for me. ‘Oh! Christ be magnified, from the altar of my life Christ be magnified in me… I won’t be formed by feeling. I hold fast to what is true.’
When something is magnified, it becomes the one thing you focus on. It could be an object that you are looking at through a magnifying glass. It could be a significant person in your life, or a situation that consumes you. But whatever it is you are focusing on, it takes up space on your altar of praise for the Lord.
In my situation, the offence I had taken was taking up space in my heart. The altar of my life was being affected by a need for human approval in this scenario, and I was magnifying all these thoughts and feelings. It was as if the picture I had in my mind of my altar of praise for the Lord was being weighed down by things which were not supposed to be there.
There are so many things that compete with our being able to focus on the Lord and praise Him with our lives. Maybe we are overtaken by anger, jealousy, inferiority, pride, fear, rejection, pain, or burdens we are carrying. Whatever is taking up space on your altar of praise, give it to the Lord. Allow Him into that area of your life so that your journey of healing and restoration can begin. He is waiting for you to take that first step. He will show you the way forward.
Annalene Holtzhausen is on the Associate Team at Ellel, Africa. She is married to Renier, who introduced her to Ellel Ministries. She is a full-time mother to their two boys. Her passion is for the restoration of women’s hearts and for people to find their worth in the Lord.
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