"The Power Of Praise"

"And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.  And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed."  Acts 16:25,26

Never underestimate the power of praise!  What is one of the first things we do, or rather withhold, when we are going through a trial or difficulty?  We begin to murmur, complain, speak negatively, get fearful, anxious and withhold our praise.  Praise is the last thing we think about doing.  It is the last thing we want to do.  When we are going through a problem, we want to feel sorry for ourselves.  We want to talk about the situation. 

Who can praise at a time like this?  Who can praise God when they are in trouble?  It makes no sense.  To the natural man it doesn't-- it is foolish.  We are not talking about praising God for the problem, we are talking about praising God in spite of it.  When we praise God in the midst of the trial, that situation will "stand at attention" and have to give way to victory because praise brings the power of God into the situation. (Psalm 22:3) 

Never underestimate the power of praise!  At midnight, while in prison bound by chains, with bleeding backs from the beaten they had suffered, Paul and Silas praised God, and the earth shook and the prison doors flew open.  Discouragement gave way to praise.
 
Never underestimate the power of praise!  In the days of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, the Ammonites and other nations rose up against Judah to destroy them.  Jehoshaphat "appointed singers unto the Lord, that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.  And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten." (2 Chronicles 20:21,22)  Praise brought victory. 

It may be foolish to you to offer up praise to the Lord when you are going through trials and difficulties.  That is why it is called a "sacrifice of praise".  But that is exactly what you need to do.  You have tried everything else.  You have tried to manipulate your way past it.  You have tried to bully your way through it.  You have tried to believe hard enough to see it change.  You have quoted every scripture you know over it.  You have exhausted all your resources.  Well, why don't you try praising your way through it.  Praise is powerful.  It may not always change your situation, and then again it might, but it will definitely make a change in you, and you will be victorious even going through the trial.  

Have a great day.  Never underestimate the power of praise!   

"Thy Will Be Done?"

"After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.  Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."  Matthew 6:9,10

When Jesus gave us the Lord's prayer, it was a model by which we would know how to pray.  He didn't intend for it to be a ritual prayer.  He didn't intend for it to be a prayer to "sooth our conscience"-- meaning that it wasn't intended to make us feel like we had done our religious duty that day if we prayed it.  He didn't intend for it to be something we could recite when we need something spiritually encouraging.  He didn't intend for it to be some "mindless" memorization that would give us "brownie points" because we could quote it.

His intention was so that His disciples-- us included-- would take its words to heart and make them have meaning and application in our lives.  So, when He said to pray, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done", He intended it to be sincere words that came from a heart of love and devotion that truly wanted the Father's will to be done in the earth, in heaven and in their lives. 

We have gotten away from His intention.  We have changed the "wording" up.  We have changed it to fit our own fleshly and self-centered desires, instead of His original intent.  Our prayer has become, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done when it is convenient for me; when it fits into my plans; when it doesn't interfere with my agenda; when I can get around to doing it; when it doesn't impose itself on me; when my schedule can accommodate it."

Is this the way you pray?  Is this become your model-- your will over His will?  Or do you earnestly and sincerely pray for His will no matter the cost, the inconvenience or the adjustments that you have to make in order for His will to be fulfilled?

Have a great day.  Is the Lord's Prayer your true desire?    

"Living Uninterrupted"

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?"  1 Corinthians 6:19

We like to live life on our own terms.  We have our own way of doing things and don't want anything to interfere with it.  We have our own schedule and don't want anything messing it up.  We have our own agenda and don't want anything to get in the way of it.  We have plans and tend to get bent out of shape when something disrupts them.  Our motto should be:  Don't interrupt me.

Does this describe you?  I have to be honest and say that it does me.  I may have my day planned out and the next thing I know it has been completely interrupted by unexpected situations that arise, phone calls, someone needing my assistance, something mechanical tears up and needs my attention or I am pulled away by something beyond my control.  (This actually happens a lot-- daily.)

Our lives are not nice, neat little packages to be lived by our own dictates and terms.  Life is often full of interruptions.  I can't help but believe that sometimes those interruptions are allowed by God to get us refocused off of self. 

When interruptions come and they send me in a different direction than I had planned, I have to remind myself that my steps are ordered by the Lord.  My life is surrendered to Him which means it is to be lived for Him and His plans, not my own.  Therefore, what will I do with the interruptions?  Will I let them make me angry, frustrated or annoyed?  Or will I let them show me how self-centered and selfish my life really is?  Will I let them show me the truth about just how flexible, or unmovable, in my own will and own terms I am?  Will I let them teach me how to be more yielded to the will of the Lord, should He decide to change my agenda and schedule today? 

Have a great day.  Are you living life on your own terms?             
 

"Is Your Name In The Book?"

"And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."  Revelation 20:14

When all is said and done, when this life is over, when the end of the world as we know it has come, there is only one thing that is going to matter.  Is your name in the Book of Life?

We will ALL stand one day before the Lord God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Eternal King and Almighty God, and He will open the Book of Life and see if your name is in it.  That will be the one thing He is looking for.  That will be your only defense.  It will be your only hope at that moment. 

Is your name there?  Again, that will be all that matters on that day.  It won't matter how often you went to church or whether you were a member of a church.  It won't matter if you sang in the choir, taught a Sunday School class, gave offerings to missionaries or even pastored a church.  It won't matter how much money you made, how popular you were, what type of education you had, how many degrees you had before or behind your name.  It won't matter if you were the ruler of a nation, an Emmy Award winner, produced million-dollar movies, or were the most famous person in the world.  It won't matter how good you were.  It won't matter that you never cheated anyone or on anyone.  It won't matter how talented you were.  It won't matter that you were a hero and saved lives, or feed the hungry, or clothed the naked, or ministered to the poor.  It won't matter that you rallied for a cause, protected the environment or fought for human rights.  None of this will matter on that day.  The Lord will be looking for one thing, and one thing only--- is your name in the Book of Life!

If it isn't there then, it will be too late.  You will be cast into the lake of fire to burn, but not burn up, forever and ever.  If it is not there now, it can be.  While you are still alive, you still have a chance to get it there.  Turn to the Lord Jesus Christ in repentance of your sins.  Acknowledge His saving grace that came through His death on the cross and follow Him from this day forth.  Then when you stand before the Lord, He will find your name, and instead of being cast into the lake of fire forever you will hear Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy lord.  Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."  (Matthew 25:23,34)

Have a great day.  The only thing that matters is if your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life.  Is it?
 

"How God Sees You"

"Therefore hath the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight."  Psalm 18:24

"In His eyesight".  It is about how God sees us.  It is not about how we see ourselves.  It is not about how others see us.  Others saw Gideon as a coward, but God saw him as a mighty man of valor.  Others saw Mary as just a young girl, but God saw her as a highly favored vessel to bear His Son.  Others saw Jacob as a deceiver, but God saw him as a prince.  Joseph's family saw him as a dreamer, but God saw him as a savior of His people.  Some saw Moses as a murderer with a speech problem, but God saw him as a leader.  Christians in the early church saw Saul/Paul as a persecutor, but God saw him as a fit vessel to carry the gospel to the world.  Others saw David as just a shepherd boy (even his family), but God saw a king. 

People may see you as worthless-- you may see yourself as worthless.  Some may see you as never amounting to anything.  Some may see you as just another fanatic.  Some may see you as an ordinary housewife.  Some may see you as too young to do anything for God.  Let me repeat myself-- it is about how God sees us.

God has a plan for each and every one of us.  His plan is not necessarily your plan or someone else's plan for you.  Regardless of how you see yourself, God works with you-- if you'll let Him-- to make you into the person He desires you to be and desires to fulfill His plan through. 

What others saw about each one of the people that were mentioned above was correct in the natural sense and from all physical appearances.  But God sees things differently.  He sees us from His perspective.  He sees us as we shall be.  He sees the finished product of a man or woman, boy or girl, who will surrender themselves to His plan.  He sees us through the righteousness of His own Son.  What He sees, and says, about us/you are more correct than what you or anyone else does. 

Have a great day.  It is about how God sees you that is important.