Habakkuk 3:17-19

 Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: 18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

 DAILY READING Matthew 6:19-34; Exodus 35:1-36:38; Proverbs 16

Sometimes we need to deliberately sit down and recount the goodness of God in our lives. To count our blessings and deliberately thank Him for all He has been doing for us; the many deaths we would have died but God did not allow us to die. Do you know that the same road you passed without harm, some people passed through it and their blood got shed. The sickness you passed through and recovered is what has killed many others. The reason why you are still alive today is because of the grace and mercy of God. Left to your enemies you would have been dead long ago. Do you know how many times death came for you, but God said, ‘No.’ The psalmist says it is because of His mercies that we are not consumed.

Yes, things may not be perfect right now in your life, but you are still alive, aren’t you? The psalmist said, ‘let everything that has breath praise the Lord.’ So as long as you have breath, even if it your last breath, it is your duty to use it and praise God, because He is worthy. And as you do so, God will ensure you will have as many breath as you need. Don’t let the enemy deceive you from praising God, by showing you the things that are not working in your life. You are still alive. And a living dog is better than a dead lion. And to him that is joined to the living there is hope.

According to our text, no matter what it may look like, be thankful. When you praise God, He raises you and causes you to walk upon your high places. The wonderful thing is that when you praise God, deliverance comes for you. So let the thing the enemy thought would hinder you from praising God, be the very reason why you praise Him.

It may seem as if your destiny has been shut in a prison. You cannot understand why there is no forward movement in your life. Paul and Silas were shut up in prison, but when they praised God at midnight, there was an earthquake and their bonds were broken. There is a mystery about  praise that breaks every prison and bondage around you. Spend time in praising God. Praise is a defense, because praise brings God’s presence. Psalm 22 says that God inhabits the praises of His people. The more you praise God, the more His presence surrounds you and when God is around you, no evil can come near you. If you are faced with a situation you don’t know how to handle then praise God. When armies came against King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicless 20, he said ‘we do not know what to do.’ And God says I know what to do: ’praise Me.’ And when they praised God, He turned the enemies against themselves and they killed each other. Some of us need God to turn our enemies to fight against each other. Praise is the instrument we need. It is time to enter into a lifestyle of continually praising God. This is the agenda for the end time Church because God says He will return to set up again the tabernacle of David that is fallen down. And the tabernacle of David is the tabernacle of praise. So the end time generation is a generation of praisers and worshippers of God; you cannot afford to be left out.

PRAYER:  Lord, please enable me to begin to praise You like never before,, grant me the grace to enumerate Your faithfulness in my life and to give You worthy praise for  all You have been doing for me in Jesus’ name.

 Quote

Praise is proof that you believe God to do what He said He would do in your life. – WORDBITE 201.

[ADAPTED FROM THE BOOK REJOICE]