I Lift My Hands

1 Kings 8:22-23
And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: And he said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart:

I can see Solomon standing on his feet before this altar. All the people are looking at him wondering what he was going to do. As they watch, he raises his hands in the air unto God. With his hands stretched out toward heaven, Solomon begins to pray. The excitement is growing among the crowd and now they have moved from wondering what he would do to what he would pray. Solomon had every eye of the congregation upon him.

At this time Solomon could have done whatever he wanted to. He could have stretched his hands out to the congregation and said, "Look at what I have built for the Lord." He could have stretched those hands out to these people in hope of receiving praise from them but he didn't do that. He reached toward Heaven to the God of gods. He then said, "Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee..." He professed in front of these present that God was not only his God, but their God as well. Then he points out that the Lord is so great and there is not a God like Him.

When Solomon says, "...in heaven above, or on earth beneath..." He knows better than we do. Solomon had access to any earthly god he could have ever wanted. His statement was that there is NO god like YOU! What makes our God different? He keeps his promise with mercy. He never leaves or forsakes us. He loves us even when we didn't love Him. He is ALIVE and not in a tomb or cemetery!

God, I raise my hands to you right now! No matter who is watching or not watching, I want you to know that my praise is to YOU. I know that there is no God like you, in heaven, or on earth. You alone are deserving of my praise and worship. Can you say this?