Praise the LORD, all you servants of the LORD who minister by night in the house of the LORD.
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the LORD.
May the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion. Psalm 134 (NIV)
Do you know someone who ministers at night? I know a few that do that. They are those awesome warriors who watch and listen for God when many of us are ‘busy with stuff’ or we are ‘sleeping’. It is not about a specific time of day that these warriors minister although I can think of two right now that do get up before daylight or stay up ‘way past sundown and pray. And listen. And pray some more. And listen much, much more.
Jesus encouraged us to pray in our closets. (Matthew 6:6) He wanted us to focus on the One to Whom we speak and listen and not care about who watches us do it! I had a prayer closet once. Literally. It was under the stairs in our home. It was big enough for me to sit, not stand. I had some wonderful conversations with God in there.
God’s house is where He lives. His sanctuary is a holy refuge where He lives and I can come. God’s house has no doors or walls or windows. It is not decorated by specific, fancy furniture. It is where God lives and it should be with me at all times!
To ‘minister’ is to first serve God. I think that if I am not serving God then whatever I do for others will be…of little worth. So if I first seek God as I ‘minister’ then I will be on His plan and I will follow His lead! His Spirit will go before me and prepare the way.
To ‘minister’ is also to submit to God. Whether it is in prayer or doing a specific task, when I bow to God and know that He is the all and all; He gets all the glory! Have you ever tried to do something that you thought was a great idea? And it was! BUT it may not have been God’s idea! OR I may have walked into all the light and grabbed the applause with all that I am – never turning to God.
The psalmist says to lift my hands and praise God! I can literally lift my hands all day and not give God any praise. It is not about where my hands are physically. It is where my heart is and the praise that comes from heart.
God will bless us from Zion. He will bless us from the Holy of Holies. He will bless us from heaven. I believe He blesses extravagantly those who minister by night. He, who never sleeps, (Psalm 121:4) sees the ministers who serve at night when others slumber – and He blesses extravagantly.
Let us give thanks.
