If praise is such a good idea, why do we resist doing it? There are two apparent reasons.

First, Satan tempts us to complain rather than to praise God. In fact, the enemy will do all within his power to stop us from glorifying the Lord by filling our thoughts with images of fear and defeat. He also knows that when we exalt the Lord, God quickly exposes his dark deception.

Carnality is the second reason people fail to praise God. The unregenerate human mind discredits praise as not being logical or intellectual.

We praise God when we are willing to submit:

– Ourselves to the Lord. Praise overflows from our lives once we yield ourselves to the Lord and stop resisting His will.
– Our intellect to the Lord. Praise involves faith. It is only when we trust Christ fully that we learn to praise Him for His goodness and mercy.
– Our social status to the Lord. Many times, the greatest hindrance to praise is our position within the community or a company. God wants us to come to Him in humility, desiring only His honor and fellowship.
– Our reputations to the Lord. When our eyes are set on ourselves, we cannot praise God. The only way to practice the joy of praise is by setting the focus of our hearts on Jesus Christ. When we do this, our lives will overflow with His goodness and mercy. We will become men and women of praise who are filled with God’s love and mercy.

Prayer: Father, protect me from the enemy’s deceptions and distractions that would keep me from praising You. I submit my heart and my mind to You! I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. —1 Peter 5:5

Praising God should be a blessing, not an obligation. When we praise God, we deepen our fellowship with Him, are empowered to overcome temptation and are strengthened to face difficulties. Praise does this by honoring God and aligning us with His desires. Through Dr. Michael Youssef’s book Empowered by Praise, you will learn how to praise the Lord more effectively by uncovering the keys to biblical praise.