When he had finished speaking to Jehoshaphat, all the men of the army of Judah began to encourage each other and their God. And they set out to fight. Then Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping him. And they rose to praise the Lord with very loud voices.
2 Chronicles 20:20, 26 (NIV)Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. For he causes his enemies to make peace with him, so they will not fight anymore.
Psalm 72:10 (NCV)Praise Before the Victory
I want to start with something that might surprise you. Praise is not primarily about your feelings. It is not about whether you feel joyful or grateful or inspired. Praise is obedience. Praise is warfare. Praise is what you do when everything in you wants to be silent, when the circumstances scream that God is not good, when your emotions tell you it would be dishonest to sing.
And yet, Scripture is full of people who chose to praise anyway. Not because they were denying their pain. Not because they were putting on a happy face. But because they understood something we have forgotten: praise realigns reality. Praise says, God is still God here, no matter what my eyes are seeing or what my heart is feeling.
One of the most striking examples of praise as warfare comes from 2 Chronicles 20. King Jehoshaphat is facing a vast army that is coming to invade Judah. He is terrified. He calls a fast. He gathers the people. He prays one of the most honest prayers in Scripture: We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.
And then God speaks through Jahaziel and says something remarkable. You will not need to fight in this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you.
And then Jehoshaphat does something that seems absurd. He appoints singers to go ahead of the army, singing to the Lord and praising Him for His holy name. They sang as they walked into battle, and the Lord set an ambush against the Ammonites and Moabites and the people of Mount Seir who were coming against Judah.
The Paul and Silas Example
In Acts 16, Paul and Silas have been beaten with rods, thrown into the inner cell, their feet fastened in stocks. It is the middle of the night. They are in pain. They are in prison. They have every reason to be depressed, angry, or despairing.
And what do they do? At midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. In the darkest moment, in the most painful circumstances, they chose to praise. And the prison shook. Every door opened. Every chain broke.
Praise released the power of God into that prison. Praise broke the strongholds of the enemy. Praise made the declaration that the circumstances were not the final word.
Why This Matters
We have made praise contingent on feeling, when Scripture makes it contingent on truth. We have made praise something we do when we are happy, when Scripture shows us praise is most powerful when we are broken. We have made praise a warm-up act, when it is actually a weapon.
Praise says, I do not understand what is happening, but I know who You are. Praise says, My feelings do not match reality, but I choose to declare reality anyway. Praise says, This circumstance is not the final word, because You are God and You are good.
Praise in the Hard Moment
Today, when you face a difficulty, choose to praise God before the difficulty resolves. Do not wait for victory. Praise before the victory. Declare who God is before you see Him work.
- What is the hardest circumstance you are facing right now? What would it look like to praise God in the middle of it?
- Read 2 Chronicles 20 again. What stands out to you about Jehoshaphat's response?
- Have you ever experienced praise releasing breakthrough? What happened?
- What would it cost you to praise God in your current situation?
- Is there something in your life right now that you think praise would be dishonest about?
- What would it look like to trust that praise actually changes things?
- What is one song or declaration you could sing over your circumstances today?
Father, I confess that I have only praised You when I feel like it. I have only declared Your goodness when my circumstances looked good. But today, I choose to praise You regardless of what I see.
You are still God even when my circumstances scream otherwise. You are still good even when life does not feel good. You are still worthy of praise even when I do not understand what You are doing.
Teach me to praise like Jehoshaphat, like Paul and Silas, like the Psalmists who chose to declare truth before they saw victory. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Tomorrow we are going to talk about worship as a life laid down on the altar. Not just songs, but surrender. Romans 12, Luke 9, and the daily decision to stop managing your own outcomes.
With honesty and hope,
Claire