How are you today? Are things going well or are you going through a difficult time right now? When things are going well, it is easy to be upbeat and positive. You walk with a skip in your step and as my mama likes to say “Life is good!” Praising God seems natural.
What about when you’re in the middle of a difficult situation or in a full blown crisis? What do you do when you’re not sure how you’re going to pay the bills or how you’re going to hold your marriage together? Or when you have a wayward child who is doing the very things you prayed he or she never would? Do you praise God then?
The praise of our Lord should never be tied to our circumstances. He never ceases being who He is because our circumstances change. Hebrews 13:8 declares He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 2 Samuel 7:22 says “How great You are, O Sovereign LORD! There is no one like You, and there is no God but You, as we have heard with our own ears.”
Our problem isn’t going through difficult circumstances. We all have those from time to time [John 16:33]. Our problem is when we focus our attention on the greatness of our circumstances instead of the greatness of our God. When we focus on the greatness of our God, we will praise Him in all circumstance. 1 Thessalonians 5:8 says “give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Years ago at my very first speaking engagement, I was blessed to meet two ladies who understood this concept. One had suffered a failed marriage and the other had battled breast cancer. They blessed me with a gift to remember our time together. It was a small, colorful plaque they purchased from a street vendor at a craft show going on that weekend. It reads “When the praises go up, the blessings come down.” The plaque hangs over my kitchen sink as a constant reminder to praise God for He is worthy of my praise and I am blessed!
The blessings aren’t necessarily the removal of our problems. The greatest blessing is knowing how great our God is and that He will be with us no matter what we face.
Take a moment today to reflect on how great our God is and tell Him about it. I promise you, you will be blessed!