12 November 2023
THE POWER OF PRAISE & THANKSGIVING
(Growing in Faith, in Truth & in Spirit: GFTS 20)
The LORD Himself says, “Whoever offers Praise glorifies Me” (Psa.50:23 – NKJV); therefore, we should always praise God - all the time! The Apostle Paul says, “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thess.5:14). Our life should be a life of living in praise of God for Who He is and what He has done for us. As the song says, “Give thanks with a grateful heart; Give thanks to the Holy One, Give thanks…” The Psalmist reiterates this: “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!” (150:6).
There is Power in Praise. The reason is that it delights God and He will come into our midst and reveal His Glory and power. Psalm 22:3 says, “Thou art Holy, O Thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel” (KJV). The NKJV: “You are Holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel”. The implication is that God comes into our midst when we are praising Him. In other words, His Presence will be manifested in true worship. I have personally witnessed miracles happening in meetings when there is high praise. People are healed and demons are evicted with no one touching or praying for them. The Glory of God was so powerfully demonstrated and the demons could not stand it. When God shows up (when there is real Praise) nothing of darkness could remain because He the Perfect and Powerful Light.
We must Praise with our whole being: “Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, Praise His Holy Name." (Psa.103:1 -NIV). Praising God with “all my inmost being” is true worship acceptable to God because it is worshipping Him “with all our heart, with all our soul and with all our mind and strength”. It is such praise and worship that brings down the Presence of God and releases His Power in the Church. That means everyone in the Worship Service worship and praise God that way – unitedly. When will that happen in our church?
Praise has the Power to Change Us. There was a Zambian politician called Frederick Chilupa, who was wrongly jailed. He was angry and bitter for this injustice and remained in jail for several years. Then he was given a book, “The Power of Praise” by Merlin Carothers. When he read the first few pages, the author suggested that one should praise God all the time, no matter what one’s situation in life is. Chilupa got angry when he read this, and threw the book aside. But later, he picked it up and finished reading it. Then he started praising God day and night thanking God for everything, even his injustice because God is in control. Months later, a miracle happened. For no reason, seemingly, he was suddenly released from prison. He run for President (seemingly no chance at all) and was elected. He proclaimed Zambia as a Christian nation and declared Jesus Christ as Lord and dedicated Zambia to God. He was President of Zambia from 1991-2002. God changed his life and circumstances because he chose to praise God. King David said, “I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psa.34:1). May we also learn to do that and be blessed.
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