"Praise is What I Do"
"And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed." Acts 16:25-26
Paul and Silas were in a city named Philippi, a Roman Colony, while there they learned that people gathered by a riverbank just outside the city for prayer. Paul and Silas went there to read them scriptures, along the way they came across a fortune teller who was demon-possessed and followed them with sayings. Paul turned to the young girl and called the demon out and the demon came out. Once the masters of the fortune teller realized what happened they became enraged because Paul had just cut into their profits. They would no longer make the money off this girl as they had plotted and planned. As a result they dragged Paul and Silas before the magistrates and convinced them to punish the two.
Paul and Silas found themselves thrown into a dungeon and were shackled and bound for doing the right thing. How many times have we found ourselves in similar circumstances? You believe you were doing the right thing, the very thing that God called you to do and in the midst of you following through you find yourself shackled in the process. It could be as simple as you being obedient in paying your tithes but finding your lights cut off and no food in the refrigerator. How about the evangelist who works hard bringing the gospel to the lost but his/her own child is drugged out and trying to live a thug's life. Without much effort at all it seems as though day in and day out we find ourselves in shackling situations and circumstances.
There's a secret weapon that many of us take for granted, the weapon of PRAISE! Through the years, I have learned the hard way that praise is often times the road to victory in my life. Shackles in my life manifest as attitudes, family turmoil, confusion, mis-communication, debt, poor judgment and the list goes on and on. These things then lead to a life of bondage and strongholds, but I'm learning to be more like Paul in these circumstances. Instead of accepting and conforming to my condition, through faith and humbleness I've learn to reach the heart of God and allow Him to show up in my life. I have gladly accepted the fact that I was created and charged to praise God, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (1 Thess. 5:18 KJV)
As I praise Him I find situations getting better, I get clarity and understanding, I even find peace in the midst of non-peaceful circumstances. My praise allows me to rise above dysfunctional situations and helps me to focus on the very character of God. When I focus on the character of God, my condition is no longer important but rather my position in the kingdom. I better understand how my grandparents and great-grandparents engulfed by slavery could pick cotton in a cotton field or watch loved ones beaten and killed yet - open their mouths and sing "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine."
Get Ready to Elevate in 2008,
Minister Sharise Jones
