Put On the Garment of Praise

and provide for those who grieve in Zion — to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. Isaiah 61:3

Praise works like a magnifying glass. It causes what you’re focusing on to get bigger, to be ‘magnified’. The Psalmist said, ‘Magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together. I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears’ (Psalm 34:3-4). It’s a mistake to wait until you’ve no problems, fewer problems, or your problems are solved before you praise the Lord. Praise is one of the great scriptural keys to problem-solving because it gets your focus on God, the problem solver. Charles Spurgeon said: ‘My happiest moments are when I am worshipping God, really adoring the Lord Jesus Christ…In that worship I forget the cares of the church and everything else. To me it is the nearest approach to what it will be in heaven.’ God has promised you ‘the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness’. It works like this. When you begin to praise Him with a heavy heart, you experience a new sense of hope and joy. Through worship you are reminded that God is bigger than the situation you face; that He’s not only capable of managing your concerns but willing, wanting, and waiting to. The psalmist wrote: ‘Seven times a day I praise You’ (Psalm 119:164). Fill your day with praise. Don’t just take coffee breaks and tea breaks, take ‘praise breaks’. Begin to praise God for two things: 1) His attributes. His power, love, grace, favor, guidance, etc. 2) His acts. Recall His goodness to you. Go ahead; take off the spirit of heaviness and put on the garment of praise.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, I praise You for all You do in, with and through me – and many times in spite of me! That is something I praise You for! In Jesus’ Name, Amen