Our praise is a powerful instrument and a mighty weapon. It is multifaceted and is a key reason why we were created. In Heaven, we will be in the pure presence and glory of our Creator. We will be surrounded by the angels and elders praising Him as we join in the eternal song. There will be perfect peace and joy in Heaven. Here on earth, we must lift praise up to see Heaven come down. Praising God doubles as protection around our minds when we lose sight of God’s love and will for our lives. Praise reminds the enemy that we serve a victorious God who fights for us, which drives him out of our situations. Praise also reminds our own souls who He is and what He’s done, which in turn edifies our faith and helps us submit to God and trust Him even further. In addition, praise creates an inviting atmosphere for the Spirit of the Lord to move freely in our lives. Praising our perfect Father is beautiful, and it is mighty.
In the Old Testament, Israel would send out musicians to their army’s front line to lead the Lord’s people, because God knows how powerful praise is when confronting enemies. Nowadays, we don’t fight battles against physical armies in our everyday lives (which we are reminded of in Ep
hesians 6:12). Instead, our minds often take on the brunt of our struggles. If we are not actively on guard against evil powers and principalities, we can easily fall into traps of perpetual negativity, anxiety, and doubt. Once in those traps, we often develop a habit of rethinking the same thoughts over and over, and we forget to give praise to God. It is difficult to dwell on the goodness of God when we are consumed by mental battles. But once we hear the Holy Spirit reminding us to praise, and we obey Him, the tides of those mental battles turn in our favor. In the song, “Raise a Hallelujah,” one line declares that “(our) weapon is a melody.”1 Initially, this phrase may sound silly because in the natural there is no way that music could be considered threatening. On a spiritual level, however, the case is very different. We cannot fight spiritual battles with physical weapons such as swords or spears. But when we proclaim “Jesus”__the mighty Name above all names__with power and authority, we scare the devil back to his hiding place. We are children of God, and God is our Victor. When we praise Him, our minds are filled with remembrance of His goodness, His faithfulness, and His power. At that same time, the enemy hears our praise, and he knows that our minds are coming back under the protection of the victorious God. When this happens, the enemy must flee, because he knows he cannot win. He is fighting a losing battle when we serve the Champion!
The wondrous aspect of this revelation is that your praise is alive, actively working to invite Jehovah into your here and now. Your praise and worship are meant to bring recognition and honor to God. When you sing, your praise means more than just staying in key or simply repeating the words that you read and hear. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Prov. 18:21 NKJV), and you cannot speak death and life at the same time. When you sing and speak praises to God, you are choosing to fill your mouth and your mind with life. Nothing that ushers in the presence of God can be connected with death. In other words, God inhabits the praises of His people (see Psalms 22:3) because those praises invoke life. When you are walking through the dark moments of this life, let your praise go to work, and God will bring the light and life back in.
Praise takes our minds off what is happening in the natural and brings us into a place of focusing on God’s plans for our lives. In January of 2022, I dealt with a deep personal loss, and it was something that, by all worldly means, should have devastated me for weeks and months. The heartache I felt at this loss left me feeling empty and abandoned, and it weighed me down until I finally realized that God was the only one who could truly renew my mind. I praise God that I was raised in a godly home, and that I had been taught to praise Him in the midst of difficulty. It was during this difficult time that the Holy Spirit not only reminded me of what I had learned from the spiritual leaders in my life but showed me how to make my praise personal to the situation I was going through. I clearly remember a specific day a couple of weeks after this loss when I recognized that I was in a better mood than I had recently been in. While driving home, a song called “High Praise” started playing. As I said, I had been in a good mood, but a part of me was convinced that I was still downcast and just happened to be having a random, good day. But as I started singing the bridge, which says “Who else is worthy/And matchless in glory?/He’s worthy, He’s worthy/Of highest praise”2 I started to laugh as I had never laughed before in my life. I felt the Holy Spirit come on me with such a strong and pure form of gladness that I’m sure I looked partly crazy to the other drivers around me as I laughed and cried with joy in my car. As I praised God, His goodness became so evident to me. I remember thinking, “Why am I laughing? I should be devastated right now.” But I wasn’t. I was praising God. Through that praise, the God I live for was reminding me who He is, and He was protecting my mind and guiding my thoughts. On that day, it was finally confirmed in my heart that my praise to God is an active tool, and God is willing and able to work great wonders through it. He’s waiting to do the same for you; all you have to do is thank Him for who He is and what He’s done in your life.
God is a truly wonderful God. He hears you when you call on His name, and He is ready to replace your darkest moments with encounters of peace, light, and heavenly boldness. All you need to do is speak your praises to Him. It can be as simple as thanking Him for waking you up this morning or calling out that He is your Provider, your Peace, and your Victory. In Him, you have the power to overcome this world through your praise.
References
Holy Bible: New King James Version. (1982). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.
1 Stevens, Jake; Helser, Jonathan David; Helser, Melissa; Skaggs, Molly. “Raise a Hallelujah”. Accessed February 17, 2023. Genius. https://genius.com/Bethel-music-raise-a-hallelujah-lyrics
2 Tribl; Maverick City Music; Wagner, Melodie; Bowe, Dante; Lake, Brandon. “High Praise”. Accessed February 17, 2023. Genius. https://genius.com/Tribl-and-maverick-city-music-high-praise-lyrics
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