We All Need the Reminder Sometimes
I have talked a few times about this topic of praise, here & there… but today, I just wanted to sit in it for a moment. I want a chance to really let it sink in & settle in our hearts… mine included.
I’m a complainer… a whiner. When things get hard, I look for a way out. It is not natural for me to “be still & know that He is God,” as the verse so rightly encourages & guides. (Psalm 46:10)
Even if I push through & try not to let it change how I interact with others, it’s easy for me to see an existing problem that will not go away, & just want to throw my head back in frustration & yell, “GO AWAY ALREADY!”
I get overwhelmed & unsettled & I don’t like it.
And sometimes, when I feel frustrated & overwhelmed & I cry out to God for help, the response comes like a gentle breeze over my heart, “Praise Me.”
And When Hurts Are Heavy…
Sometimes it’s something that hurt me deeply, either a traumatic circumstance or betrayal of someone close to me, & I just feel despair begin to settle on me like a heavy, cumbersome blanket, pushing me down under its weight.
Crawling in bed, pulling the comforter up to my chin, curling up on my side, just wanting to shut out the whole world.
And sometimes, in these burdensome moments when the hurt closes in around me & I can only manage choking out a silent sob, I stop to pray to God for rescue & refuge, & the response comes like a gentle breeze over my heart, “Praise Me.”
And When God Leads Me Where I Do Not Want to Go…
Or when God asks something of me that I DO NOT WANT… like when He first revealed His guiding us back to Guam.
I felt stubborn & angry & hurt & afraid. It became a wrestling match between me & God. I knew He would win (that He SHOULD win), that He is never wrong, that He always had a plan… but I didn’t want it. I was afraid.
And His reminder, that felt so annoying to my defiant heart, was the response that came like a gentle breeze over my heart, “Praise Me.”
And When Depression Symptoms Threaten to Envelop Me…
My depression symptoms, too. Oh, how they can beat me up sometimes.
It’s true that I’m in a weird transition of recognizing how I have made my coping mechanisms my idols, turning to them IN PLACE OF God’s peace… so I am cutting myself off of them, my idols, forcing myself to try trusting ONLY in God with NO substitutes… & you may think, “if you need them, you need them, Michelle. If they help, use them,” but it’s beyond that. I have become DEPENDENT on them, ADDICTED to them, & once I indulge, the consuming weight shifts from the symptoms to an inability to pull away from the coping mechanisms.
And some days, I feel strong & able, seeing God guide me in His PEACE… a freedom.
But other days, I just want it to be easy & I just want to run away to what feels easy, to what I know… to STUFF every hint of the angst it brings. And I feel overcome & afraid of losing to the symptoms.
And even still, when I run instead to my prayer journal to hash out my angst in desperate prayers of repentance & admission to God of my fear (aka my lack of trust in Him), asking for His help, the response comes like a gentle breeze over my heart, “Praise Me.”
He Is Worthy. He Is Sufficient. He Cares for Me.
Praise Him. Give Him thanks. Worship Him… the echoed reminders to my heart in times of trouble.
Sometimes it feels insensitive. Would you feel that way? Like God is just dismissing your hurt, fear, angst, etc.? But at the heart of it, if you take prayerful time to look deeper, you begin to see the wisdom behind this gentle nudge to Praise Him in ALL circumstances.
In some seasons, life can seem overwhelmingly painful. Like you are being dragged down to the ground & you can’t ever get up again. Sometimes it’s scary & uncertain & everything just seems to be exploding all around you in chaos & pain & you may really feel that if you fall, you may never be able to get back up again.
But Praise Him.
Why? Because it takes our eyes off the mess & redirects them to HIM.
Cultivating a Heart of Praise-A Vital Necessity in Life
Cultivating a heart of praise is a VITAL necessity in life–to bow our hurting, heavy hearts under His strong, mighty, capable hand.
Saying, “God, this is HARD, but You, You’re Enough! You are mighty. You are strong. You are ABLE! I can rely on You. I can trust You. You have a plan & You can carry me through any valley or ANY storm! You are worthy to be praised, come what may, no matter what! You are sufficient as my refuge & my strength in ANY time of trouble. You are GOD!”
God isn’t being insensitive when He nudges your heart to praise Him when it’s hard… it’s His reminder to you to take a moment to put your hope NOT in how YOU can handle the given situation or circumstance, but in HIM.
Let Your Heart Choose to Praise Him in ALL Circumstances
“God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore, we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah” (Psalm 46:1-3)
“IN the multitude of my anxieties, Your comforts delight my soul.” (Psalm 94:19; emphasis added)
“My grace is sufficient, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)
“Cast all your cares on Him for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:6-7)
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28-30)
“God will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6)
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
“I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised…” (2 Samuel 22:4; Psalm 18:3; Psalm 145:3)
Remember…
God hasn’t abandoned me in those HARD moments, He is beckoning me to lay that HARD at His feet for help & to lift Him up in my heart so I may remember WHO He is… WHO loves me… & WHO is able!
He doesn’t promise life will never be hard. We live in a sin-torn, broken world, in NEED OF JESUS… but He does promise to be with us in it & through it… & to be our sufficiency. (Read about why we need JESUS, here: “The Gospel Changes Everything” & “Why the Gospel Is Such a Big Deal.”)
PRAISE HIM! Not just for the promise of eternity with Him, but now, in the hurting.
He is worthy.
Lean into Him. Put your weight on Him. Lift Him up in your heart.
PRAISE HIM for He is worthy to be praised!
Shine HOPE by DETERMINING to PRAISE Him in ALL circumstances… & so also find the hope you’re so desperately needing in your darkest moments–in HIM.
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