Praising - Major Key to Victory                                             Nov/18

Recently I have had a further revelation regarding my walk with the Lord.  I have seen in a fresh way that surrender to Him, although absolutely necessary, is not the final step. There is another key to victory!  And that is ‘praise!’

 Jehoshaphat was overwhelmed in 2 Chronicles 20 by a huge attacking army, yet he “…set himself to seek the Lord…and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.”  When they received a word from Him, the king believed it, bowed his face to the ground and worshipped. The priestly ones then stood up to praise the Lord ‘with voices loud and high.’

On the day of battle Jehoshaphat sent some out before the army, to sing and to praise. Scripture reports that: “…when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people who had come against Judah and they were defeated.”

In the New Testament we have a number of verses about praising.  I Thess. 5:16,18 tells us to, “Rejoice evermore…in everything gives thanks for this is the will of God…”

Eph. 5:20 says “giving thanks always for all things to God the Father….”

To actually do this requires us to trust by faith that our Father is on His throne, and that He is still all powerful today.  We are told that He is ‘intimately acquainted with all our ways’- even counting the very hairs on our head - and that He loves us!

 If this is all true, and I do believe it is; the question remains: Will I open my mouth and begin to praise the Lord as they did during the time of Jehoshaphat’s battle?  And that means ‘before’ I see the victory!

So many times our feelings rule us; bully us as they oppose the facts, the truth of God’s Words. Our natural thoughts would tell us that it’s stupid to praise out loud at all times, for all things. And yet - what a powerful antidote to anxiety!  Something happens in us, and in the heavenlies when we praise and thank the Lord!

Let’s encourage one another to actually purpose in our hearts that we will do this – that we will praise Him even for the distressing trials – that we ‘will count it all joy.’  I am finding that this is another step into the freedom which our Savior has come to bring.