Sometimes We Have To Be Reminded

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! (Psalm 150:6)

If we are striving to be anything like David when it comes to praise, we should technically be praising God continuously and at all times (Psalm 34). That means no matter what! The good, the bad, and the ugly! This is totally a goal of mine.

Some days the weight of our circumstances, thoughts, and what’s going on in the world can stifle our praise. Times are hard for everyone and not everyone is able to deal with what they are facing. Because of that, there are some people who find it difficult to find reasons to praise. Neglecting to praise in hard times dupes us out of the benefits of praise. No matter what we go through YET shall we praise! (Psalms 71:14; 43:5; 42:11) Praise is a ministry tool, a weapon of spiritual mass destruction, and a method of encouraging the one who is downcast in spirit.

Just the other day I was working on a project and got extremely overwhelmed and exhausted. Because I had just been studying how important our thoughts are and how they can drive us down to pits of despair, I quickly noticed where my negative thoughts were leading me. I had to force myself to praise. The easiest way for me is by turning on music. I made sure to sing a long so that praise was coming from my own lips. (So obviously I didn’t turn it to Nicki Minaj or Nipsey Hussle radio). When the first song went off so did my praise type thoughts! I was straight back to feeling anxious and overwhelmed. When the next song was about 30seconds in I realized what happened. So once again I had to purposely 

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shift my thoughts back to words of praise; but this time it didn’t take much force. This exchange happened for a while. It was like my brain was changing channels between three shows over and over. A praise show, a distraction show, and an anxiety show. So annoying! But soon enough I didn’t need the music and praise flowed without me needing help. My headache decreased and I got my second wind!

The enemy is a crafty sucka. He will do anything to plant thoughts that hinder praise! Why? “Because he knows that praise will restore our joy and in joy comes strength from the Lord” (From the e-book Let Him Lead). Why would he want us strengthened? He needs us to remain weak so that we are no match for him. What he can’t have is for our minds or spirit man to be strengthened in the Lord. It’s far too risky for him. 

These are the good days, when I am aware that praise and worship (with my life: my actions, thoughts, words) need to occur. A few weeks ago before Let Him Lead came about I needed some serious reminders of just how good God has been to me. I was in one of those “blah I’m just going thru the motions” states of mind and I was operating in a defeated mindset that was causing me to give up on some of the promises God made to me. When I shut down all my distractions AND made myself spend more effective and purposed time with God I saw that praise was essential in restoring and maintaining my hope in God. 

I write all this to say, loving the Lord comes with a directive to follow his commands. A command stated continuously throughout the bible is that praise should always be on our lips. No matter what! And while I know God loves when we do, it does something for the praiser as well. It switches our focus to how big our God is. It protects us from the thought pits the enemy uses to throw us off our game and it builds our relationship with him and the relationship of other believers who are watching us. When we see people praising and encouraged even amidst thee most tragic circumstance, we have that “I want what they’re drinking” feeling. We seek it out and in the process are built up and restored in Christ. You see, your praise can be a tool used for evangelism!

So this week’s daily devotions will focus on reminding us of who God is and who he has been to us. Hopefully we can see past our current situations and to the God who is bigger and more than willing and able to bring us through whatever those situations may be! It’s time to have a yet praise! Will you learn to praise him no matter what?

Why should I praise…

For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. 
Deuteronomy 10:17 NKJV 

Therefore

Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.
Psalm 150