Praises

 This was sent to me and was just what I needed right now, so thought I would share here.
 "For the LORD our GOD is the One who goes with us to fight against our enemies to give us victory..!" ~Deuteronomy 20:4.
We have had a ton of teaching, both verbally and the written word on prayer, but very little on praise. Yet there is much more emphasis in the Bible on praise than on prayer,.   Within the pages of the Bible, the entire universe is envisioned as one grand chorus of praise to the Creator. Notice Psalms 148 through 150, Psalm 145:10 declares "ALL Thy works shall praise Thee!" Praise is the highest occupation of angels. Heaven is one grand paean of praise. And what about the Revelation? Surely that which occupies the total time and energies of heaven must be a fitting pattern for us here on earth???   For some reason we have underestimated the importance of praise. Because if praise is the highest occupation of angels there must be a valid reason for it. If heaven considers it important to maintain a chorus of praise unceasingly day and night around the throne [Revelation 4:8], it MUST BE supremely relevant!   So, if the supreme function of angelic hosts is praise, it follows logically that the highest function of Christians must also be to praise God. We are told in Psalm 22:3 that Yahweh "inhabits the praises of His people." This is an AWESOME text. Since praise produces the atmosphere in which the Divine Presence resides, we should be constantly and continuously uplifting our voices in praise...then when we are 'resisting the devil' he and his cohorts must back off or turn and flee because God is truly within us; and if God is with us, who can be against us?   Thus praise would assure victory in prayer because it overcomes the devil and anything he throws our way. BUT praise which overcomes is not a mere sporadic kind; Psalm 34:1 says: "I will praise [bless] the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth."   To be most effective then, praise must become a massive, continuous, fixed habit, full-time occupation, a diligently pursued vocation, a total way of life. This principle is emphasized in Psalm 57:7 "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise." My heart is FIXED!" We read in the Word, that at the very moment of the writing David was a fugitive from Saul. His praise was on principle, not impulse.   Praising God for everything going on in our lives or those of loved ones is NOT easy. But when we come to understand that God is developing in us the character of His Son, Jesus, then all things do work for good to those who love Him. ~Paul Billheimer. * * * The next time you are called to suffer, pay attention. It may be the closest you'll ever get to God.  ~Max Lucado.