PRAISE REVOLUTION: WARFARE

Have you ever wondered why God commands and desires our PRAISE? Is it because He has as ego problem? Is He insecure? Does He need our PRAISE? The answer to all these questions is emphatically NO. God does not need our PRAISE. Scripture records that there are creatures in heaven that do nothing but WORSHIP Him day and night (Revelation 4:8)

Why then has God ordained our PRAISE? Psalm 8:2 gives us the answer: "because of our enemies." Some people feel they have done the Lord a great service if they spend thirty minutes WORSHIPING Him. The fact is we do not do Him a favour; we do ourselves a favour and the devil great damage. God has not ordained PRAISE because He needs it, but because we need to PRAISE Him.

Ezekiel refers to Lucifer as "the anointed cherub" (Eziekiel 28:13-14). Lucifer was called to lead all of heaven in WORSHIP to the most high God ... but he fell because of PRIDE (Isaiah 14:12-15). Because of a prideful heart, Satan fell from heaven, lost his heavenly anointing and was cast to the earth. (Ezekiel 28:16-18).

The wonderful thing God did was to take what Satan was originally anointed to do and allow us, the body of Christ, to use it as a weapon of warfare to destroy the enemy's plans. Psalm 8:2 says that God has ordained PRAISE because of our enemy, to silence the avenger. The word silence is the Hebrew word "shabath" which means "to cause to fail, to repose, suffer to be lacking, to put down, take away."

As we PRAISE the Lord, we cause the enemy to fail. As we lift our voices to God, we defeat the power of Satan that would bring us into bondage. As we enter into WORSHIP, we begin to take back what the enemy has stolen from us.

When you understand this, SPIRITUAL WARFARE is no longer drudgery. That's why Paul could say, "Fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy 6:12). It is a good fight when you know your enemy is fleeing in terror. We are not running from our enemy; instead we have him on the run. we are not in a defensive position waiting for him to attack. Rather we take the offensive and go after his kingdom aggressively. We are God's commandoes who go in behind the lines rescuing those that are held captive. We use spiritual weapons of war to blow up his communications facilities and destroy his method of operation.

Paul said that "the weapons of our WARFARE are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of stronghold" (2 Corinthians 10:9). PRAISE and WORSHIP play an important role in all this because God has ordained our PRAISE to silence him. It is time for the church to arise in this hour and PRAISE the Lord with all it's might. We must become uninhibited in our PRAISE, even as children are (Psalm 8:2 says - "out of the mouth of babes"). Then our weapon of WARFARE - PRAISE - will be unleashed on the powers of darkness and result in their demise and destruction.
(an extract from - Silencing The Enemy by Robert Gay)



PRAISE - THE VICTORY YOU HAVE IN GOD OVER YOUR ENEMIES
Psalm 27:3 - Praise Him when an army comes against you
2Samuel 22:30 - Praise Him when you can overtake an entire troop
2 Chronicles 20:17 - Praise Him when He fights on your behalf
2 Chronicles 20:21 - Praise Him when you can defeat an overwhelming
Romans 8:31 - Praise Him when God is for you and no one can stand against you
Psalm 7:6 - Praise Him when your enemies rage against you
Psalm 27:2-5 - Praise Him when your enemies come against you
Psalm 25:19 - when your enemies are many and are very cruel
Psalm 38: 19 - Praise Him when your enemies are multiplied and very strong
Psalm69:4 - Praise Him when your enemies hate you without cause ...
Psalm 102:8 - Praise Him when your enemies speak against your all day long
Lamentation 3:52 -Praise Him when your enemies hunt you down without cause
1 Samuel 2:1 - Praise Him when you can smile at your enemies becuae of His salvation
Psalm 18:1-3 - Praise Him when you are delivered from your enemies
Psalm 9:3 - Praise Him when your enemies fall and perish at His presence
Psalm 18:3, 48 - Praise Him when you call on the Lord and are saved from your enemies
Ps 23:5 - Praise Him when He prepares a table for you in the presence of your enemies
Psalm 25:2 - Praise Him when He will not allow your enemies to triump over you
Psalm 27:6 - Praise Him when He lifts your head above your enemies
Psalm 27:11 - Praise Him when He leads you on a smooth path in the face of your enemies
Psalm 41:2 - Praise Him when He stands against the will of your enemies
Psalm 119:98 - Praise Him when He makes you wiser than your enemies through His Word
Psalm 143:9 - Praise Him when He is a shelter from your enemies
Micah 7:8 - Praise Him when He lifts you and gives you light in the face of your enemies
2 Kings 17:39 - Praise Him when He delivers your from the hand of all your enemies
Zephaniah 3:14-15 - Praise Him when He turns back your enemies
Psalm 66:3 - Praise Him when His great power cause your enemies to cringe

PRAISE THE LORD!

PRAISE REVOLUTION: TRIALS

TRIALS ENABLE PEOPLE TO RISE

ABOVE RELIGION TO GOD

Brother Andrew

God uses trials in our lives to refine, beautify, and strengthen us.. In our natural state our personalities resemble unrefined gold. The heat of our difficult circumstances melts the gold and brings to the surface the dross in our characters - the pride and unbelief, the unloving attitudes, the self -will.
PRAISING God brings our hearts in line with His intentions, so that He can work in us more freely. It opens us to His will, so that we can cooperate with Him in His plan to remove the impurities.
Yet, instead of PRAISING, we so easily complain and resist His working. By our complaints and resistance we stir the scum back into our personalities. This may necessitate the heat of continued chastening to accomplish what God wants to do in us. It may delay His answers to our prayers for both ourselves and our loved ones. In contrast, PRAISE and THANKSGIVING can serve as catalysts, speeding up the refining process in our lives.

God uses trials to perfect FAITH as well as character. Again and again trials bring us to the end of our human resources, so that we allow to meet our needs and satisfy our longings. Trials rip away the filmsy fabric of our self-sufficiency. This allows God to weave into our hearts His strength, love, and wisdom. Trials exercise our FAITH, developing strong confidence that says, "I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me, [that is, I am self-sufficient in Christ's suuficiency - Philippians 4:13]
With God no probelm in our personalities or circumstances is impossibile or even difficult. Our troubles never surprise Him. They never catch Him off guard, causing Him to wring His hands and wonder what to do. As we repeatedly focus on God's sufficiency in difficult situations, we develop a steady trust in Him.

CHOOSING GOD'S PERSPECTIVE
PRAISE helps us to stand back from our difficulties and fix our attention on our infinite, loving God. It helps us measure our probelms look like molehills rather than mountains. In the light of God's sovereign kindness and wise purposes, we see them as stepping-stones rather than stumbling blocks, as opportunities rather than obstacles. They are raw materialsfor God's miracles and the prelude to greater obedience.
As our perspective changes, our feelings often shift from negative to positive. But even if they are slow to respond, we can continue to give thanks with our minds and wills. We can choose to rejoice thatGod is our source of wise guidance and overcoming power though we still feel angry or confused about our circumstances.
OVERCOMING CONTRARY INCLINATIONS
God has given us His WORD to reassure our hearts. Through it He reminds us of His loving goodness, which always plans for our best, of His wisdom, which never makes a mistake, and of His power, which can make something glorious our of the sorriest fragments of our lives.
God has also given us His Spirit, who energizes us to obey His command to give thanks. As we choose to thank Him simply because we want to obey and please Him, we switch on His power by faith. we give Him opportunity to work in us, making us both willing and able to give sincere thanks in spite of contrary feelings.
By natural temperament we may differ from one another in the time that elapses between event and our choice to give thanks, of between that choice and our upsurge of joy. As we can shorten our periods of inner resistance or adjustment. This is growth. Growth does not mean that we have no struggles, but that we more quickly resolve our inner conflicts.

WELCOMING TRIALS AS FRIENDS
Through THANKSGIVING and PRAISE we obey God's command, "When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives, my brothers, don't resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends!" (James 1:2 - Phillips). James reminds us that trials come to test our FAITH. They develop us so that we will in no way be deficient. In view of these tremendous benefits, we are to welcome trials as friends. The KJV says that we should count it all JOY when we "fall into" many trials.
The attitude of accepting trials with JOY was a principle with the Apostle Paul. He refused to lose heart when afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down. He accepted these troubles as opportunities to manifest the life of Jesus to other people (2 Corinthians 4:8-11).

USING EVERYTHING FOR GOOD
We serve a God Who can cause all things to work together for good, both for ourselves and others (Romans 8:28). He can produce beauty out of ashes, power out of weakness, growth out of failure, triump out of distress. As we give THANKS and PRAISE regardless of what happens, we align ourselves with God and His purposes. This prepares us to colabour with Him in using for good the worst happens to us in a fallen world.
(an extract from: PRAISE - A Door To God's Presence by Warren & Ruth Myers)

May this awesome song inspires you to bring PRAISE in your situations .... have a victorious week. TPWC.

PRAISE REVOLUTION: UNCONDITIONALLY

Why do we praise God? Do we desire to honor Him and make Him glad? Or do we feel that praise puts God under obligation to grant the earthly longings we bring to Him in prayer? Will God do whatever we ask simply because we praise Him?

God is not a heavenly vending machine into which we insert the coin of praise, press the right button, and get whatever we want. Nor is praise is a magical incantation that forces God to fulfill our wishes. Many of us would not consciously try to manipulate God. But when we praise Him in the midst of a trial, we can be tempted to secretly bargain with Him, feeling in some recess of our heart, "I'm praising You, Lord. Now You owe it to me to work out this situation the way I want."

TRUSTING REGARDLESS OF WHAT HAPPENS

True praise imposes no condition on God. It chooses to believe Him regardless of the situation and it's outcome. It accepts the circumstances He has permitted, without insisting that He change them. Such praise begins with the attitude that says, "Father, I'm going to keep trusting You even though everything is dark and confusing." As we continue to praise, we reach the place where we can say, " Father, thank You that You are working in me to beautify my character. Don't remove this problem until You've done all You want to do through it, in me and in others. Use it to prepare me for the furture You have in mind for me. Change me in any way You see fit."

One major purpose of trials is to strengthen our faith and transform our attitudes. Therefore choosing an attitude of trust and praise sometimes ends a trial with surprising speed. But even if it does not, we find ourselves enriched and strengthen to endure.

Daniel 3 tells the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who refused to bow to the golden image of king Nebuchadnezzar. Hoping to dissuade them of their folly, the king said in a rage, "What god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?" They replied, "Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are bot going to serve you.r gods or worship the golden image that you have set up" (Daniel 3:15, 17-18). Infuriated, the king had the three you men cast into the blazing furnace.

We all know the outcome of these three Hebrew children's faith. Their miraculaous deliverance has inspired faith down through the centuries.

DEMOSTRATING OUR TRUST

Through praise each of us can demostrate trust in God to work in the present as He has in past centuries. In the final chapters of Genesis we see how God brought far-reaching benefits through all the events that had happended to Joseph - the cruel betrayal by his brothers, the agonies of his soul, the slavery, the false accusations, the long years of imprisonment, and the forgetfulness of the butler he had befriended, that resulted with the extra years of confinement.

We read in Psalm 105 that God Himself had sent Joseph to Egypt, intending to bring good out of his trials (Psalm 105:17). He used them to prepare this youth to be prime minister of the greatest nation on earth. Through Joseph's trials, God arranged to have him in the right place atthe right time to save the lives of hundreds of thousands during a severe famine. Joseph's long years of suffering resulted in his own life being saved, as well as his entire family,and through it, the ancestors of Jesus.

Joseph showed his confidence in God's loving sovereignty in Genesis 50. When his brothers feared retribution, Joseph told them "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. So therefore, do not be afraid" (Genesis 50:20-21). As we offer praise, we show that we believe that Joseph's God is alive and at work today, even in the bleakest circumstances.

Through praise we follow the example of Paul and Silas in their painful imprisonment at Philippi. There in the inner prison, with their feet fastened in stocks, they were praying and singing at midnight. Suddenly God miraculously released them thorugh an earthquake (Acts 16). Or we emulate Paul when he later rejoiced in the Lord though imprisoned for years. He was confident that his suffering was accomplishing God's purposes and therefore his own deepest desires.

GOD DOES NOT PROMISE TO MAKE OUR TROUBLES VANISH AND OUR WISHES COME TRUE IF WE PRAISE HIM. BUT PRAISE OFTEN RELEASES THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF CHRIST IN BOTH OUR CHARACTER AND OUR SITUATIONS.

A MAJOR STRESS REDUCER

Praise and thanksgiving do not insulate us from probelms and pressures. But as we couple them with honest prayer, they do serve as a major stress reducer. They help release us from the self-imposed stresses of our negative attitudes, opening our hearts to the soothing power of God's peace, which surpasses all understanding. And they do more than soothe. They also infuse us with vitality. God's Word says, "Strength and joy are in His place ... the joy of the Lord is your strength" (1 Chronicles 16:27, Nehemiah 8:10). Praise and thanksgiving usher us into God's presence, where we can partake of His joy and quietly absorb strength, strength for our every need - spiritual, emotional or physical.

Our UNCONDITIONAL PRAISE deepens our trust and joy in God. It increases our spiritual impact on people. These and other benefits come not as our due for praising the Lord but simply as added reasons to praise Him for His undeserved favor. They come not because we manipulate God to do what we want, but because we center our thoughts and expectations in Him.

Our motive in genuine praise is to bring joy and glory to God. we are here to do His will, not to obligate Him to do ours.

(An extract from Praise - A Door To God's Presence by Warren & Ruth Myers)

PRAISE REVOLUTION: ASK

SHOW ME YOUR GLORY

Exodus 33:18

There's a key to becoming a fountain of praise. It's simple, really, although we often have a hard time remembering it. We come up with formulas and techniques, strategies that we think will get us closer to the heart of God. Perhaps we want some special insight that will be the key to understanding His nature and praising Him more deeply. If only we had that missing piece of information, we imagine we would be spiritual giant we intend to be. It all must be amusing to God. But if we look into His Word, we'll realize the simple key to knowing Him: ASK

Think about that. Is there anyone in the Bible who ever asked with a sincere heart to know God deeply and was turned down? No. We can see it here with Moses - "Show me Your glory" - and we can see it repeatedly throughout Scripture. David was man after God's own heart, and according to the Word, he found it (Acts 13:22, 1 Samuel 16:13). Jeremiah and others promised that whoever seeks Him will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13). People came looking for Jesus, and He obliged them. An Ethiopian came looking for God in Jerusalem, and God sent Philip (Acts 8:26-36). A Roman was looking for God in Joppa, and God sent Peter (Acts 10). Those who look for God- with an open, sincere heart, of course - find Him. If we want to praise Him for who He is, all we need to do is ASK: "Lord, who are You?"

That will transform a life. It isn't strategy or a secret, just a request. It's request that God honors - always. And it's a whole lot simpler than some of the tricks we try when we want to see God. If we really want see Him for the purpose of praising Him, He's there for the asking.

Even a glimpse of glory will utterly transform a life. Moses came down from the mountain so radiant that it scared his friends. Nothing will change a perspective so much as a vision of the eternal God. And nothing can achieve that glimpse other than a sincere request. So ASK. Make that your prayer today, and many days to come. "Lord, show me Your glory." (An extract from Worship The King by Chris Tiegreen)

Be blessed with this awesome song by Jesus Culture - Show Me Your Glory. TPWC \0/