Faith-filled Praise

My heart is pounding, I am so excited! Today is the day to give thanks! Whoo hoo! 2020 has been such an awesome year, who isn't excited to sit in front of a frozen turkey dinner and a screen (so you can have a socially distanced Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family) and be grateful? Not feeling it? I think many of us are rockin' in that same boat. But here's the thing, if you serve the risen Christ, gratitude is not optional. Not really. I mean, you can dig in your heels and whine about your poor health or your empty pockets or your lazy husband or whatever you want to whine about, but a Christian (read: "little Christ") should look like Christ. And when we don't, it's not Christ's fault. It's time to get some gratitude in our attitude.

Earlier this year, I felt compelled to study Israel's battles -- how God fought for them, or how they foolishly tried it on their own. Shortly after that, someone suggested I pray the Psalms. The same person later told me, "You are in the middle of warfare, Honey. You need to do a study about being equipped for the fight." Then, this whole thing about the Hallel (Psalm 113-118) came up, and I've been studying that ever since. Fighting and praising, and praising and fighting. All through this year. Praise God! One of the greatest weapons we have against the enemy is our praise! The battles came -- trust me! -- but praise drowning out the noise of enemy artillery, gratitude taking the sting out of wounds, worship pushing its way through enemy ordnance raining down? Whoo! That is some serious counterfire!

And God knows that, in the heat of the battle, it can be a little hard to summon up all that gratitude for the things He's done. God knows we are weak, and our sheep-like brains have trouble recalling the awesome way He watched over us yesterday or the word of encouragement He sent us through a friend this morning. So, God put it in a Book, had men write it down so we could verify it over and over. We could read it each and every day, and be reminded of all He has done. In fact, there is an entire section right there in the middle -- it's called Psalms -- with praises already written out for us to sing and pray. 

I'm not sure if you know, but there's a not-so Top Secret weapon God wants you to have. It's praise for things that haven't even happened yet. Seriously. When we are so embroiled in the fight we fail to give thanks for what God has done, we can give thanks for what He will do. Psalm 118:21 is a perfect example. In it, the psalmist says, "I will praise You, for You have answered me and have become my salvation." The Hebrew word for "salvation" in this passage is yeshua. A study by Arthur E. Glass, "Yeshua in the Tanakh"' reveals that when yeshua is accompanied in Scripture by the word "my", it is a direct reference to Jesus, the Messiah, the Savior. The psalmist wrote this hundreds of years before Jesus came to us. Prophetically, the psalmist is giving thanks for something that hasn't even happened yet! How can he do that? Faith in what God promised through His Word. The same way you and I can do that. The not-so Top Secret weapon we have against the enemy is giving thanks in faith for something God has not even brought to fruition -- yet. In this, we give Him the praise and glory He is due and, at the same time, stand with Him in faith, align ourselves with His purposes by declaring, "I know You will do whatever You say. I see it with spiritual eyes. I speak it and give You thanks before it ever comes to pass!" That is power! That is the stuff victories are made of!

So, I pray our year finishes out with good news and good health and lots of toilet paper on grocery store shelves. But if not, let's keep up an endless barrage of praise and thanksgiving, and in faith, declare what God says will come to pass.

Happy Thanksgiving!