Praise Him No Matter What

"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!" -Psalm 150:6

Nicole was born with a brain malformation that impacted her motor skills and cognitive development. As a toddler, she struggled to lift her arms off the sides of her body. The only way we got her to raise her arms in therapy was to tell her to “praise the Lord” and she slowly but surely started lifting her arms higher and higher. Today she has no restrictions in her arms! Psalms 134:2 says, “Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord” (NIV).

I grew up in a Christian home, so singing and music were part of my everyday life. It was a generational gift passed down from my mother (Nicole’s grandmother). My sisters and I sang together in front of the church from an early age. We also sang a lot in the car on road trips and on the way to church. Nicole’s father also grew up singing. Therefore, it was no surprise when Nicole grew up loving to sing.

Nicole wakes up in the morning with a smile on her face and the first thing she asks is to get on her iPad. She opens Christian music videos on YouTube or the Internet and sings and praises the Lord all day long! She would sit and listen to music and sing all day long, if we let her. Christian music is ingrained in her spirit and her mind. She knows all the words to songs, the names of songs, the names of the artists, and the name of each album. She’s got an amazing memory when it comes to Christian music. She doesn’t even eat until we tell her to stop and eat. It is definitely in her DNA and in her soul to praise the Lord. She even sings when she’s not feeling well.

I’m convinced that we can all learn from the purity of Nicole’s praise! In fact, several people have come up to us after church to tell us how much Nicole blesses them when she praises. They come in depressed and overwhelmed and then look over at her smiling, singing, and pouring out her heart to the Lord while sitting in her wheelchair. Then they reevaluate their own posture and ask themselves, “Why should I feel this way when this girl is disabled and still praising the Lord?” Scripture states in Psalms 150:6, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord” (NIV). Jeremiah 20:13 says, “Sing to God! All praise to God! He saves the weak from the grip of the wicked” (MSG).

Nicole’s praise teaches me every day to praise Him no matter what my circumstances are. If you’re feeling down, overwhelmed, depressed, or alone, just praise Him! Your praise will change your heart. It will change your mind and give you hope to continue throughout your day, your week, and your year. Psalms 56:10 says, “I trust in the Lord. And I praise him! I trust in the Word of God. And I praise him!” (TPT). The Lord is with you in everything you do every day. He sees your tears, your struggles—and He can meet you wherever you are. So be encouraged and keep praising Him!

“But I will give all my thanks to you, Lord, for you make everything right in the end. I will sing my highest praise to the God of the Highest Place!” (Ps. 7:17 TPT).