The word ‘praise’ means to give thanks.
It is stupid, absolutely stupid to think that giving thanks to God works, especially when everything around you seems to suggest otherwise. But Praise is one of the deadliest weapons that you could ever have. Why? Because it confuses the enemy. Can you imagine being on a battle field with someone, and instead of pulling out a sword or a gun, you pull out a boom box and start to dance and sing as if crazy? Your opponent will wonder what’s wrong with you!
In the spirit realm, it’s the same. The enemy knows that you cannot physically see your breakthrough and he will take advantage of this little fact to make you think that what you are praying for is not going to manifest. In fact, you all would agree that you normally only give thanks when you have received something tangible. Therefore, when you give thanks despite not seeing your breakthrough, the enemy is totally dumbfounded.
Now it’s important to know that every weapon in war, must be used strategically, or they can sometimes have no effect. I can give you a whole lot of scriptures to back this up, but from my own experience, I can testify that praise is the best weapon when
1. you are about to go into depression
2. when someone opposes what God has promised you
3. when you are about to get frustrated
4. when you find yourself comparing yourself to someone who has something you don’t have, but want/need
5. when you are financially distressed.
6. when you are hearing voices that you are not going to make it, or that you lose.
There are others. The key is to discern when you need to use this weapon. At your very worst, if you cannot think of what weapon to use, put praise into effect.
How to praise: (Sorry but I got to go there for a bit)
I know you think praising is easy, but it’s important to remember that Donnie McClurkin, Hezekiah Walker, Marvin Sapp, are not YOUR WEAPONS OF PRAISE. They can help you but YOUR PRAISE is YOUR WEAPON. You must use your own mouth to praise. The devil is not attacking those singers, he is attacking you. So even if your voice is not as great as these wonderful singers, it is imperative that you use your own praise to confound the enemy.
If you read Psalm 150, it says this
Praise the LORD!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heaven!
2 Praise him for his mighty works;
praise his unequaled greatness!
3 Praise him with a blast of the ram’s horn;
praise him with the lyre and harp!
4 Praise him with the tambourine and dancing;
praise him with strings and flutes!
5 Praise him with a clash of cymbals;
praise him with loud clanging cymbals.
6 Let everything that breathes sing praises to the LORD!
Praise involves
1. Your MOUTH- you have to open up your mouth. Declare that God is good, tell Him thanks over and over again.
2. Your hands- you can clap, raise (as in war), wave, shake (with cymbals)- but everytime you clap your hands, you literally shake the realm of Guck. And whatever is stuck there gets shifted into your realm. (ummm. ps: in case you’re wondering where I am getting all of these from, I am a worship leader as well. It is my job to know how praise works)
3. Shout- Your mouth again. (the hebrew is Shabach). Shouting out “thank you!” resonates not only to God, but to the host of heaven. You call God’s army to defend you. And you continuously confuse the enemy’s camp.
4. Play an instrument. You do not need to know how to play any instrument. You are an instrument. You are an organ, you are a trumpet, you have vocal ‘strings’, you have feet, you can whistle as a flute. Every part of you is capable of making rhythm before God. Play your instruments in the bathroom, in your car, where ever!
5. Dance- I don’t care if it’s ballet, ballroom, hip hop, battle. When you dance FOR God, the enemy trembles. (Remember that Lucifer was the chief instructor of music. When he fell, he lost the privilege to praise and worship God. And as a slap in his face, God gave that privilege to you)
When you put these together you get what is called the “Tep’hillah” praise, which is a combo of tactics that the enemy cannot possibly understanding.
God said that He will use the foolish things of the world to confound those that think they are wise. I know doing any of these when you feel like things have lost, doesn’t make sense. But put it to the test and you will see what happens.
