Sorry for not posting yesterday. Had such a wonderful day and then of course the enemy comes, but he will not seal my peace. when given the choice I will choose peace. her is a blog that I feel will be good for everyone today. we should... praise God at all times amen.
Day 28
Our natural tendency is to allow our circumstances to define our attitude. So most of the time, you can tell when a person is going through a difficult test by his change of attitude. I am actually impressed when I am with someone whom I know, and the person reveals a difficult ordeal he has been going through, and I never picked up on it because he genuinely seemed to be among the most joyous people on earth. How about you? Is there like a beast raging in your spirit every time the going gets tough? Can you genuinely praise God during difficult times just as you do during good times?
This article is not a call to denial. I know that no matter how much you love God, if the test that you are going through is tough enough, you will have your moments. That's true about all of us. The question is, however, can and will we praise God in the midst of such times?
In the book of Isaiah, there is a profound Messianic prophecy given, which says that the Lord will give us "the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61:3). Note that this garment of praise is specifically for the spirit of heaviness-or the spirit of despair, as the New International Version (NIV) puts it. Also, this verse clearly is saying that Christians experience despairing moments. If that were not the case, then the stated purpose for the garment of praise would be pointless.
We don't need this special anointing to offer to God the sacrifice of praise when life is good. Even many non-Christians tend to praise God when life is beautiful. But it's much more of a challenge to tell Him how good He is, to serve Him with gladness, and to exalt His name and person when everything seems to be going terrible in your life. Yea, it's more of a challenge when you feel that everything good is passing you by, and all that's bad seems to find you. But that is exactly where the stark contrast should exist between Christians and those who have not been provided this "garment of praise" that we have been anointed to wear when our spirit is down.
Christians go through many of the same things non-Christians go through. Let me break it down for you: Christians can get sick, they can fall on financially hard times, their marriage can become a living hell, etc. The difference should be seen in how Christians handle those difficulties. Others should see in us the difference that Christ makes. They should want the inner peace and the prevailing joy that we have.
Are you that kind of person? Or do the circumstances you encounter define your attitude toward God? Are you currently walking in bitterness toward Him because of your circumstances?
Let me close by quickly giving you at least three reasons why we should learn to put on the garment of praise when a depressive spirit tries to dominate us.
•One is because a merry heart does good like medicine (Proverbs 17:22).
•Secondly, when we praise God, He inhabits our praises (Psalm 22:3).
•Thirdly, the verse that we started out with from the book of Isaiah ends this way: "that he might be glorified."
That's it! When we can genuinely praise God in the midst of circumstances that those who don't know Christ would expect to overwhelm us, we glorify God. And that my friend is one of our main objectives for serving Him.
Frank King has been preaching the gospel for 30 years. He served as a senior pastor of churches for over twelve years. Currently, he is an author, and ministers as an evangelist. Through the grace of God, Frank has been blessed to regularly cross cultural lines in his preaching. He holds a Master of Theology degree. Website: http://www.efrankking.com/
Day 28
Our natural tendency is to allow our circumstances to define our attitude. So most of the time, you can tell when a person is going through a difficult test by his change of attitude. I am actually impressed when I am with someone whom I know, and the person reveals a difficult ordeal he has been going through, and I never picked up on it because he genuinely seemed to be among the most joyous people on earth. How about you? Is there like a beast raging in your spirit every time the going gets tough? Can you genuinely praise God during difficult times just as you do during good times?
This article is not a call to denial. I know that no matter how much you love God, if the test that you are going through is tough enough, you will have your moments. That's true about all of us. The question is, however, can and will we praise God in the midst of such times?
In the book of Isaiah, there is a profound Messianic prophecy given, which says that the Lord will give us "the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61:3). Note that this garment of praise is specifically for the spirit of heaviness-or the spirit of despair, as the New International Version (NIV) puts it. Also, this verse clearly is saying that Christians experience despairing moments. If that were not the case, then the stated purpose for the garment of praise would be pointless.
We don't need this special anointing to offer to God the sacrifice of praise when life is good. Even many non-Christians tend to praise God when life is beautiful. But it's much more of a challenge to tell Him how good He is, to serve Him with gladness, and to exalt His name and person when everything seems to be going terrible in your life. Yea, it's more of a challenge when you feel that everything good is passing you by, and all that's bad seems to find you. But that is exactly where the stark contrast should exist between Christians and those who have not been provided this "garment of praise" that we have been anointed to wear when our spirit is down.
Christians go through many of the same things non-Christians go through. Let me break it down for you: Christians can get sick, they can fall on financially hard times, their marriage can become a living hell, etc. The difference should be seen in how Christians handle those difficulties. Others should see in us the difference that Christ makes. They should want the inner peace and the prevailing joy that we have.
Are you that kind of person? Or do the circumstances you encounter define your attitude toward God? Are you currently walking in bitterness toward Him because of your circumstances?
Let me close by quickly giving you at least three reasons why we should learn to put on the garment of praise when a depressive spirit tries to dominate us.
•One is because a merry heart does good like medicine (Proverbs 17:22).
•Secondly, when we praise God, He inhabits our praises (Psalm 22:3).
•Thirdly, the verse that we started out with from the book of Isaiah ends this way: "that he might be glorified."
That's it! When we can genuinely praise God in the midst of circumstances that those who don't know Christ would expect to overwhelm us, we glorify God. And that my friend is one of our main objectives for serving Him.
Frank King has been preaching the gospel for 30 years. He served as a senior pastor of churches for over twelve years. Currently, he is an author, and ministers as an evangelist. Through the grace of God, Frank has been blessed to regularly cross cultural lines in his preaching. He holds a Master of Theology degree. Website: http://www.efrankking.com/
