Praise is a Weapon!
2 Chronicles 20:22 says, "As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. "
Recently, I have been distracted. I have been tricked. I have been focusing on the wrong things in prayer. As I have been fighting for victory in prayer with God, I have somehow forgotten that I don't need to fight for victory in the circumstances in my life, but I can fight from the place of Jesus' victory already established long ago on the cross.
Sound familiar? Do your prayers tend to go straight to focusing on the mountains that need to be moved? Do your prayers ever have desperation of, "God please answer this prayer, fight this battle, change this circumstance?"
Well, I have good news for you today friend! As I was praying this morning, the Lord reminded me that His ways are above our ways. His ways are not the ways of the world. The way the world handles problems is MUCH different that His....oh and by the way, even though His ways might seem ineffective (because we cannot see the immediate result) they are actually more powerful than any way the world could possibly dream up.
Want to know the prayer strategy the Lord impressed upon my heart this morning? Well, by the title of this blog you could have probably guessed it...Praise! Yes, God reminded me that He actually inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3). God showed me that I was focusing too much on the spiritual warfare surrounding me instead of God Almighty as victor.
Why praise as a weapon? Praise lifts our eyes from the battle to the victory. Praise reminds us and helps us focus on who God is, what He has already done, and what He is going to do...instead of focusing on the battle or what the enemy is doing!!!
It's hard to see how praising God can be a mightier weapon in this world more so than physical weapons, but the highlighted scripture above proves it to be true. Yes, God called the Israelites to go against what their flesh would logically think would defeat the enemy army and walk by faith not sight. He called them to praise Him and watch how He would defeat their enemy. And He did. He did in a mighty way. And He will for you and me today too.
Take a moment and think about a battle, a prayer request, a deep concern in your heart. How have you been fighting? Try giving the battle to God and praising Him for who He is, what He has already done, and what you believe and know He will do because of what His Word tells you. Praise Him. Even though it might not seem like the natural emotional response....just do it...and keep doing it. And watch Him bring the victory to fruition!
