2 Chronicles 20:21- 22
And when he (King Jehoshaphat) had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army (it takes courage to praise the Lord as one faces the uncertainty of battle) and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth forever. 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.
Can we apply this principle of praise instead of our normal reactions? If we do, we can immediately start taking control of the situation and start sowing seeds of victory as we enter the storm. God responds to faith, and the declaration of praise is the outward manifestation of faith. It’s the last thing we feel like doing, but it’s a “gut” decision that, despite what the circumstances look like or how we feel, doesn’t change the truth that God is God and big enough to handle whatever we are facing. Either to defeat it or take us through it.
My praise to Him is not conditioned on how my world is going. He’s praise-worthy in good days and on not-so-good days and even on downright awful days. He has redeemed and saved us and, through my faith in Him, has given us an Eternal Hope that cannot be taken away regardless of what happens here. Therefore my praise to Him in these times declares His Greatness and my confidence in Him. He is always worthy of our praise. Even when we hit bottom (I mean the lowest low,) He’s still praise-worthy, not because of the bad stuff that has happened but because through it, He will rescue me and make it turn out for my good. When the Bible speaks of our faith as being refined through fire, it means it. It is only by going through these trials that we learn that God is still greater. Otherwise, it’s just words on our part. When we long for Eternity more than we long for the passing pleasures of life, the refining process is having its good work on us.
Psalms 139:7-10
Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.
Psalms 84:1-4
How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.
Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise! Selah
When we don’t feel like thanking Him or praising Him is when we need to the most. That expression of faith and trust in our God honors Him, and in so doing, we are most acting like a son or daughter. We are sowing into our future, and we will receive a blessing from it. We are learning to see with eyes of faith. God’s Kingdom runs just the direct opposite of man’s kingdom. If you have a need, you give; if you want love, be loving; if you want forgiveness, forgive. What we want we must sow by faith first, and if we want victory in the hard times, we must praise Him. For He is always good, always loving, and constantly molding us into His image.
Galatians 6:7-9
Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
A great example of this is the obedience of the widow who fed Elijah. In 1 Kings 17, she only had enough meal and oil for one dinner, and afterward, she and her son were going to die. This is the situation and the woman God told Elijah to stay with. That she would provide for him. It would not surprise me if Elijah said, “are you sure God, do you have the right woman, or really, is this the best you could do?” We would expect a woman that was well off, but God provided a poor widow (God is constantly challenging our faith). Elijah asked this woman for water and to make him a cake from her flour. She told him her story…
1 Kings 17:8-16
The Widow of Zarephath
Then the word of the LORD came to him, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” And she said, “As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.” And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.’” And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.
Only when we are willing and ready to live beyond our understanding, which is what faith is, do miracles occur. As long as we are “hedging our bets,” our faith is divided, and a divided man will not stand. It’s either all or nothing. Through her sacrificial obedience, giving what she didn’t have to give, did she open the way for God to be God, and through it, God did only what God can do. Her act of obedience provided for her, her son, and Elijah for months. When it doesn’t make sense, it’s probably the Lord allowing us to step outside our comfort zone; so much so that our actions can be interpreted as being irresponsible. Jesus said the poor in spirit are the faithful ones. Is this an example of that? It’s when we are desperate we are willing to risk it. What did she have to lose? She was one meal away from starvation. If we took that attitude, what do I have to lose by trusting God? I only have two choices, do it my way or God’s, and how much success have I had doing it my way? Can we learn from the example of this widow? Through obedience and praise, we allow God to create an answer for us that only God can do. What kind of impact will this kind of living have on you, your children, your marriage, your testimony at work etc.? It will be amazing…
In God’s Kingdom, opportunity comes when you only have a little oil and flour. That’s how God likes to work. With Gideon 2/3rd’s of the army was sent home; there were too many. God likes it when the odds are crazy in the enemy’s favor. That way, when He intercedes, He receives all the glory and credit. Creating an opportunity for God to be God is such a powerful way to live that this is the last thing the enemy wants. Instead, he wants to discourage us and keep us under stress with worry and fear, but if in that, we start to praise the Lord, even if things get worse (which we should expect). We continue to praise and give thanks for His Faithfulness our gold (our faith) is becoming tried and fired and purified unto all pleasing. Circumstances do not define His character, regardless of the night season. He paid way too much for us, however without the fire and the trials, we will not become purified nor become the sons or daughters or the Bride that such an honorable King deserves. The real question is, are we willing to go on the journey to become that for Him?
Deuteronomy 33:26-27
“There is none like God, O Jeshurun( Israel) who rides through the heavens to your help, through the skies in his majesty.
The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, ‘Destroy.’
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation, he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
That way of escape is to turn to Him, pray, fast and find promises in His Word that pertain to the problem. I have shared this before many times but my two most favorite go too scriptures is Joshua 1:1-9 and Proverbs 3: 5&6, (though I love all of Proverbs 3). These verses I have hung my life on, and never ever have I been disappointed.
My son-in-law is a fire chief, and I’m sure there are fires he arrives at that as they start to apply the water, it is as if it fuels the fire, not put it out. However, a steady application of water eventually changes that. The fire begins to weaken as they turn the corner and see its end. Problems are just like that, you start praising the Lord for His absolute greatness and ability to turn this around, and it only gets worse! You must believe that praise is the correct response, as water is to fire. For this to work, though, some conditions must be met.
For one, is my life in obedience to Christ, am I Born Again (John 3:16)? Is my life serving Him, or am I compromised, living a double life? Do I go to church just on Sundays and ignore Faith, Truth, Prayer, and personal Bible Study the rest of the week? Am I just a weekend Christian because that will not work. Going to church only on Sunday is like having one good meal a week. Like normal food, we would starve to death, and the same is true in the spiritual world. To have victory in fighting temptations, overcoming the vices of the carnal man and all the worldly influences we are bombarded with etc., requires frequent if not daily ingestion of God’s Word.
For the principles of life in the Spirit to work, all of me (or as much as I am aware of) must be in submission to all of Him. I need to be having regular Bible study/prayer times with The Lord where I bring my concerns, my fears, and hopes, etc., to Him. When done in earnestness, there is an exchange that takes place where I walk away feeling lighter and more hopeful. That may not happen every time, but like fighting a fire, eventually, we will win and, in the process, grow much closer to the Lord.
To continue to praise God (throwing water on the fire) when things don’t look so great shows that we are under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. That He is firmly seated on His Throne in the Heavens and in me. This type of Praise lacks in our Christian experience. We don’t think of praising or giving Him thanks when things go wrong or facing a crisis. It’s always afterward, but to thank Him beforehand acknowledges your role as a son or daughter and His role as our Father. Praise hones our focus and gets us back onto His page and into Kingdom Living.
We all acknowledge that God cannot be conquered, but we don’t live like that, so until our life fits what we confess, we have a growth curve or strongholds in us that need to be conquered. There should be no difference between what I confess to how I live. Our faith in God can be such a powerful tool that when applied to life and its problems, it causes the strongholds in me to crumble, just like the walls of Jericho came down with praise. The praise of the faithful moves the hand of God unlike anything else. He takes note and answers His child. Daniel, a man of similar passion, was given great revelation. What was his “secret,” he communed with God 3x times a day. His heart was extremely soft towards The Lord.
Daniel 10:11
And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken — this word unto me, I stood trembling.
I desire that we all would be Daniels, and when we praise God, it is not praising Him for the bad things that happen, but it’s praising Him for the fact that despite the bad things, He is no less God and can use them for our good.
Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.
Isaiah 51:12-13
I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass, and have (you) forgotten the LORD, your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, and you fear continually all the day because of the wrath of the oppressor, when he sets himself to destroy? And where is the wrath of the oppressor?
When we take our eyes off our problem and look to Heaven and see all God has made and done, our problems become small in comparison.
Psalms 19:1-6
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them, he has set a tent for the sun,
which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
It’s acknowledging Him for the very thing that Israel continually failed at, that He can care for us and guide us through the good, the not-so-good, and the awful of life and see us to the other side. Where is your hope? If it’s here in this life, it will fail you. You are building your life on the sand. If it’s in Christ and your hope “investment” is in the life to come, will are building your life on the Rock of Christ, which defeated Hell and crushed the enemy underfoot, and your life and the lives you care for will have a sure foundation.
Therefore, in conclusion, since He already has the answer and is big enough to deliver on it, praise is therefore a most appropriate response to give Him IN THE MIDST OF THE CRISIS. Let’s not repeat Israel’s errors. GOD IS ETERNAL AND ALL POWERFUL, and we need to start living like that, Amen? The same truth said as a question is “How big is your God?”
How we live, answers that question.
Father God,
Thank you for this compelling study. Help us get a hold of it and reread these truths until they become us. Let us know to live as such is to invite the enemy, but he only but a tool in your hand using him to accomplish your perfection in us. There is no need to fear at all. He may appear as a lion ready to devour, but he has a choke collar and leash made from the Power of the Resurrection held in the hands of no one other than the Conquering King, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose very blood bought our freedom. Amen and Amen