Praise THE LORD!`
Our God is worthy of our praise (Psalm 18:3). He has shaped us and formed us that we may declare his praises (Isaiah 43:21). Praise gives glory to God and opens us up to a deeper union with Him. When we praise God, we acknowledge who he is and what he has done in our lives. Psalmist David says, “I will praise the Lord at all times. His Praise shall continually be in my mouth’ (Psalm 34:1). He further says in Psalm 35:28 that his tongue will speak of God’s praises all day long. There is power in praise. Let us see from the scriptures what praise can do in our lives.
- Praise BRINGS Victory
Praise brings victory in our lives. God inhabits the praises of his people (Ps. 22:3). When we praise and worship Him, His presence will descend among us and the presence of God will fill every situation that we are facing and we will experience certain victory in all our problems and difficulties. When King Jehoshaphat was informed that a coalition of enemy armies was advancing toward the palace in such numbers that there was no possibility of surviving the attack, he sought the face of the Lord with all his people. The Lord heard their cry and his answer came quickly through the prophet, “Do not be afraid or dismayed, the battle is mine!” The result was that they advanced toward that army with the sole weapon of praise, a one-line chorus singing, ‘Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever’. As they began to praise the Lord, the Lord caused the enemies to fight each other and destroy themselves (2 Chronicles 20:19-26). This is the same victory the Lord wants to give to us when we came before Him in praise and worship. When we offer God our praise, we are causing Him to arise in our midst and put to flight the spiritual hosts of wickedness that are trying to defeat us.
- Praise BREAKS the Barriers
Praise helps us experience a breakthrough in our lives and the barriers to our blessings will be removed. When Israelites were facing the wall of Jericho as a barrier on their way to the Promised Land, the Lord instructed them to walk silently around the city for six days and on the seventh day they were to make a great shout unto the Lord. Accordingly on the seventh day the people joined together and made a great shout unto the Lord and the wall of Jericho collapsed to the ground. When we praise and worship the Lord, the walls of resistance will come down and we can enter into the promises of God in our lives (Joshua 6:1-20). The Lord is a barrier breaker (Micah 2:13). As we sing and make a joyful noise unto him, the presence of God will descend and all the mountainous barriers and problems that are standing on our way will melt like wax and disappear (Ps. 95:1, 2; 97:1-5). Hallelujah!
- Praise BEGETS Freedom
Praise and worship frees us from our bondages. Paul and Silas were beaten repeatedly and bound and put in prison. In the midst of their pain and bondage, they began to praise and worship the Lord and the Lord delivered them in a mighty way (Acts 16:23-26). They did not murmur and complain against God because of their pain and suffering. When we praise and worship the Lord in the midst of our struggles and suffering, we will experience freedom in a supernatural way. The story of Jonah is a very graphic example of what it means to give unto the Lord the sacrifice of praise in the midst of debilitating circumstances. Instead of murmuring and complaining about his situation inside the belly of a whale, Jonah did the right thing. He turned his attention towards God through prayer and praise (Jonah 2:7-9). The Lord commanded the fish to unload the passenger immediately and it promptly vomited Jonah in the dry land. Yes, praise is the preface to freedom and blessing!
- Praise BANISHES the Evil Spirits
Praise and worship brings deliverance from demonic oppression. When Saul was tormented by an evil spirit, they brought David to play the harp before him. David was a worshipper and as he played the harp and worshipped the Lord, the evil spirit would leave Saul and he would be refreshed (1 Samuel 16:14-23). When we praise and worship the Lord, we would experience a deliverance from the oppression of evil spirits. As we put on the garment of praise, we would be delivered from the spirit of heaviness. No exercise or medicine will cure the ill of discouragement like praise. Depression and praise cannot live in the same heart. They are absolutely incompatible roommates! The constant wearing of the garment of praise will ward off the spirit of fear and doubt and unbelief and we would be filled with a strong faith as we extol the greatness of the Lord (Isaiah 61:1-3).
Dearly beloved, I encourage you to praise your way out of sickness, praise your way out of barrenness, praise your way out of poverty, praise your way out of spiritual dryness. Whatever blessing and breakthrough you are looking for, begin to praise God and see what miracle GOD will perform in your life. Always remember, when praises goes up, God’s blessing comes down!
