When an Anthem Reminds Us to Praise God

Have you ever found yourself in an unexpected moment where two worlds collided, leaving you with a story you couldn't wait to share?

Recently, I was scheduled to officiate a basketball doubleheader. What I did not know was that the visiting opponent was not just another boarding school.

The opponent was from Australia. Every year, this school comes to the United States and plays schools up and down the East Coast.

Now I can say I have officiated an international basketball game!

Before the game started the host school played the Australian national anthem as a sign of welcome and respect for their heritage and homeland.

Typically, we play our national anthem before sporting events but few people actually sing along. Sometimes because they don’t know the words anyway. Sometimes because a group is singing it. Sometimes because people think it is disrespectful to sing it.

Regardless, what caught my attention about this whole thing was the booming voices of around two dozen Australian boys proudly, and loudly, singing their national anthem.

As someone who grew up being taught to sing along with the United States anthem, and having parents who always sang it (whether at a high school sporting event, collegiate competition, or anywhere else), this warmed my heart.


I try to carry on that tradition, not as loudly as my parents, but often I am the only one in the entire gym singing our anthem, so it was a wonderful sound to listen to the Australians proudly belt out their country’s anthem.

In Psalm 33:1-3, we find the words:



Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous!

      Praise befits the upright.

Give thanks to the LORD with the lyre;

      make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

Sing to him a new song;

      play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

The psalmist, likely David, is reminding the Israelite worshipers of the importance of praising God. It is an appeal for joyful praise of God.

He includes using instruments to praise God. This is not just lip service to God. It is a concert!

Recently, a bunch of us from our church went to the Brandon Lake concert when he came to Virginia, and I was taken aback by how much people sang. Young and old. Black and white. Men and women. Boys and Girls. (Not to mention our minister of music and good friend, Nikisha, yelling out “You better sing it boy!” as Brandon Lake ministered in song and praised God.)

This is a reminder of how important it is to praise God. (I will save my soapbox of how teens (and adults) can belt out Taylor Swift songs but won’t sing in church because it is not the style they like.)

Remember to shout for joy. Praise is what God’s people do. Give thanks to God. Use your instruments (piano, organ, guitars, trumpet, drums, whatever). Sing a new song (and the old ones)!

Shout loud. Don’t hold back.

Just like those Australian boys belted out the song of their nation, let us belt out in pride the praises to the God of all creation.

Anyway, I was just thinking…