Today’s devotional reading comes from Psalm 66:1-2.

Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands:  Sing forth the honor of His name: make His praise glorious.”

Praise is an integral part of worship.  God is the Creator of the Universe and everything in it.  He is the Most High God and the Sovereign of all things.  He therefore deserves our worship; He deserves our praise. 

We know this, and we praise God during prayer.  But how often do we sing His praises?  I don’t mean just in church, I mean at home or wherever we are.  God loves music: He invented it.  It blesses His heart when we sing songs of praise and thanksgiving to Him.  It puts a smile on His face.

But more than this, it puts a smile on our face.  When we lift up our voices in praise, it lifts our spirits and the Holy Ghost within us joins in and Jesus and the Father also through Him.  Before you know it, we’ve got a Heavenly quartet going on, and even if you’re the worst singer in the world, you start to sound pretty good.

Praise also chases away the Enemy when he comes in to steal our joy.  The Bible says that God inhabits our praises (Psalm 22:3).  So, by our praising God, we literally speak Righteousness.  The devil is very jealous of the praises of God, because he desires this praise for himself.  So when he hears us praising God and glorifying His name, he won’t want to stick around for the chorus, and he will flee us for a season.  This makes praise a weapon of spiritual warfare and therefore an arrow that every Christian must have in his quiver.

Praise and thanksgiving can also make us feel better when we are going through difficult trials.  The Bible says that during these times we should put on “the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness” (Isaiah 61:3).  Believe me: it works. 

It can be tough to praise God and thank Him when we are going through.  But if we love Him and believe that He is in charge and only wants the best for us, then we must believe that He has allowed these times in our lives for our ultimate good and His glory.  Remember “all things work together for good” for those of us who love God and are called by Him–even the bad things.

Let us lift up our voices to God and praise Him for His goodness.   In case you’re interested, below is a song about praising God that always lifts my spirits.  Enjoy.

My thanks to Lena Davis for teaching me the concept of praise and worship as a weapon of spiritual warfare.

The Still Man