“I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.” 2 Samuel 22:4 NKJ
“The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say: “ Praise the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for His mercy endures forever”— and of those who will bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captives of the land to return as at the first,’ says the LORD.” Jeremiah 33:11 NKJ
I can’t tell you the number of days I woke up to the sound of my dad singing songs like, “Oh what a beautiful morning, Oh what a beautiful day, I’ve got a beautiful feeling, everything’s going my way.” Or he would sing, “Good morning to you, good morning to you, we’re all in our places with sunshiny faces, and this is the way we start out our day, this is the way we start out our day.” My dad wasn’t even a Christian but he set the tone of our mornings with joyful praise and a happy heart, and his praise brought a sense of peace to our environment. I am sure he had no idea that he was doing spiritual warfare when he sang to us in the mornings, but that is exactly what he was doing!
Praise is one of the most powerful weapons we have in our spiritual arsenal! The enemy cannot stand to hear the praises of God’s people. There are many stories in the Bible where God’s people sang praises in the midst of battles and their praises led them to victory. In Acts 16:25 – 26 Paul and Silas sang praises in prison and set a miracle into motion! “But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.”
I can’t even begin to imagine what that was like or how those prisoners and guards responded. The one guard was so freaked out that he drew his sword and almost killed himself, but Paul stopped him! Sometimes I think we read the stories in the Bible and forget that the same power to break out of the prisons of our own lives is available to us. Many people are trapped in mental prisons of doubt, loneliness, fear, anxiety, skepticism, and unbelief! Some people are trapped in physical prisons like the prison of debt, the prison of a dead end job, the prison of an unfulfilled dream, the prison of an abusive marriage, the prison of sickness, etc. As we all know prison is a desolate place and everyone in prison longs for the day of their release!
As Christians we have the power to break the chains that bind us and to cause an earthquake that destroys the foundation of the prisons we find ourselves locked in! That power is found in the praises of our mouth! Remember what Proverbs 18:20-21 tells us, “A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; from the produce of his lips he shall be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” And what is the fruit we will eat of when we speak life through our praises? Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…..”
Each time God delivered his people from the enemy praises came from their mouths! I am confident that the people were not always excited at the instruction of the Lord when He told them to sing praises! In fact I am sure they probably had thoughts just like I do when God tells me to sing praises in the midst of a battle! I say “Really? Are you kidding me? I don’t want to praise! I want to scream!”
But each time I listen to the voice of the Lord over my own inner voice, and I begin to sing praises; victory soon follows and I break free from my prison chains! An amazing transformation takes place and I feel empowered by the Holy Spirit! Then in the days that follow I eat of the fruit of my mouth and experience incredible peace, joy, love, goodness, etc. I have come to understand the importance of praising God in the midst of my battles because my praises immobilize the enemy and renders him defeated!
Sing praises to the Lord today in the midst of the battles you are facing! Sing praises to the Lord today while you are in the prison chains that bind you! Sing praises to the Lord today because the enemy is defeated! Sing praises to the Lord today and be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit! Sing praises to the Lord today in the midnight hour of your despair! Sing praises to the Lord today for victory belongs to you! Sing praises to the Lord today and you will be filled with the fruit of the Spirit!
Prayer: I will sing praises today in faith knowing that as I do, the enemy is rendered defeated! As I sing praises I know that I will be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and I will be strengthened in my inner man. A glorious day awaits me as I choose to believe by faith that the praises of my mouth produce the fruit of the Spirit! I will walk in victory and shout joyful praise to You oh God, for You and You alone are worthy to be praised! Amen
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