Lead With Praise
Thursday, September 8
Lead With Praise
At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. 2 Chronicles 20:22
When Judah was in danger of imminent attack from three enemy armies that had joined forces to destroy them, King Jehoshaphat responded by getting the people to fast and pray and…sing! In the flesh we think it should be “Fast and pray and attack in the Name of the Lord!” But no, he got the people to sing. Yesterday we discovered they sang, “Give thanks to the Lord; His faithful loves endures forever!” They sang it at the top of their lungs and they led the procession not with swords, shields and spears but with a song. They sang with conviction in their hearts and at the very moment that the words of honor started to come out of their mouth in praise, the Lord sent confusion among the enemies of God and they started fighting each other until they destroyed each other. What a sight that must have been, especially for the armies of Judah who watched the whole thing! Praise confused the enemy.
Today this weapon remains available and ever active. Praise is a weapon of warfare for the sons and daughters of God. Praise is a mighty weapon against the enemy. The Bible makes it clear that there are enemies beyond our physical enemies (Ephesians 6). In other words, physical enemies that come against the children of God are being driven by dark spiritual forces led by Satan Himself.
Praise attracts the manifest presence of God. The Bible tells us that God sits enthroned on the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3). Then, it encourages your own heart and gives you boldness. Finally, it disturbs, hinders and confuses the enemy. It’s especially confusing to the enemy when he has you surrounded with seemingly no way out. At that point, what he expects is for you to be paralyzed with fear, ready to throw in the towel and begin doubting God. But when you do the opposite and instead of complaining and running the other way, you hold your ground and lift up praise and adoration to the Lord Jesus, it confuses the enemy leaving his plan of destruction in shambles.
God’s Word instructs us to resist the devil and the best way to resist him is to praise the Lord with all of your heart, even when things look hopeless. So praise, stand and watch as the Lord will defeat your enemies again and again.