It’s easy to praise God with our whole hearts when things are going great in life. It’s easy to praise Him when we see Him answer prayers or see Him at work in our lives. It’s easy to open up our mouths and belt out our praise and make it glorious when we are in church on Sunday and we feel the presence of God. When things are going great, we eagerly share with others all that God is doing in our lives. The joy that we feel, we want to spread and share with others.
There are also times in life when life just seems to move at the “status quo.” Maybe we don’t see God doing big things, but we know that He is at work. At the same time there is nothing bad happening in our lives either. That, by itself, should be a reason to praise God and give Him thanks. But often when we hit times of “status quo,” our praises don’t come as quickly or as boisterous as when we see God doing big things because we don’t see the little things God is doing that are deserving of praise. Instead we take the little things for granted. (Click to tweet) Like that person that cut you off in rush hour traffic this morning. You probably got upset – maybe even lost your temper and blew your horn. But did you stop to think that perhaps it was the hand of God that kept you out of an accident because of that driver? We can choose to become upset or we can choose to give God praise for his protection over us.
What about when it’s time to get up and go to work or school on Monday….the praises probably are not as quick to rise up from our hearts and push past our lips. Maybe you have several days off this week in preparation for Thanksgiving Day and when next week comes around and its time to go back to the office, will you be getting up to give God praise? What about the days when you dread going into work? Maybe there is an audit, or conflict in the office that continue to go unresolved and people hold grudges, anger and bitterness inside making themselves and everyone around them miserable? Do you praise God in those moments, thanking Him for the way He provides for you through that job? Do you pray for that person and seek how God can grow you in this season?
What about the times when life gets messy or God seems silent? Do we praise Him then, or grumble and complain? Maybe we praise Him with words, but it isn’t quite heartfelt. We put on a smile at church, pretend everything is okay and the praises we sing come from our lips, but the heart just doesn’t sing along. It’s difficult to praise God in the storms of life or the times there are unanswered questions. Satan tries to sneak in, steal our joy, and attempts to make us think God doesn’t hear our prayers or care about our problems. He tries to make us think that the things we do for God don’t matter and it doesn’t make a difference. In these moments we have to make a conscious effort to choose joy…and to choose to praise God. (click to tweet)
Psalm 9:1-2 says, “I will praise, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvelous works. I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name. O thou most high.” It might surprise you, but God doesn’t need our praise. In Luke 19:40 Jesus said, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” (Click to tweet) In Psalm 66:4, the psalmist wrote, “All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name.” In Psalm 19:1, he wrote, “the heavens declare the glory of God.” Babby Mason sings about keeping the rocks silent by praising His name (hear the song here). Will you be like Babby and keep the rocks silent one more day?
Our praise to God, is an acknowledgement of what He has done for us. The word praise means, “to say good things about” (Webster). When we praise God, we are admiring, honoring, and worshiping Him through the joyful thanksgiving and adoration of God as we celebrate His goodness to us and His grace. (click to tweet) But how do we do that when it seems like our world is falling apart or we’ve been waiting on God and getting anxious for Him to do something?
When we praise God, even in the hard times, we demonstrate our trust in Him. A trust that knows without any doubt that God has a plan for us … and it’s a good plan, even if we can’t see the goodness in it right now. We can believe in His promise that “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28) When we trust Him, we can know that God will work everything out. I know there are times when I let God know that anytime He’s ready is good for me…but I also need to remember that in the times that it’s difficult to praise God is often the times He is growing me, refining me, to make me more like Christ. Sometimes, it’s in these times, that I learn something new about God or a new facet of His love for me. And I can praise Him for that too.
In the moments that Satan attempts to fill my head and heart with doubts and when I find it hard to praise God with my whole heart, I try to focus on who He is and what He’s done for me. That alone is enough reason to praise Him. (click to tweet) Don Moen wrote it best in a musical entitled, God For Us. Read the words below and let them speak to your heart and you’ll soon be praising God with your whole heart. (You can also listen along in the recorded performance here.)
You Can Trust Him by Don Moen
My friend, you can trust God today.
He is good and He is good all the time.
But as you focus on His goodness, don’t miss His greatness.
He is unparalleled and unprecedented.
He is the centerpiece of civilization.
He is the superlative of all excellence.
He is the sum of human greatness.
He is the source of divine grace.
His name is the only one able to save
And His blood is the only power able to cleanse.
His ears open to the sinners call
His hand is quick to lift a fallen soul
He is the eternal lover of us all … Everyone,
And you can trust Him.
He supplies mercy for the struggling soul
He sustains the tempted and the tried
He sympathizes with the wounded and broken
He strengthens the weak, and the weary
He guards and He guides the wanderer
He heals the sick and cleanses the leper
He delivers the captives and defends the helpless
and He binds up the broken hearted
He’s for you and you can trust Him
Jesus is the key to all knowledge
He is the wellspring of wisdom
He is the door way of deliverance
and He is the path way of peace
He is the roadway of righteousness
He is the highway of holiness
He is the gateway to glory
And yes you can trust Him
Jesus is enough
He’s the all sufficient King
He’s the King of Jews
He’s the King of Israel
He’s the King of Righteousness
and He’s the King of the Ages
He’s the King of Heaven
He’s the King of glory
He’s the King of kings
And he’s the Lord of lords
And yes again you can trust Him
And rejoice in this my friend
He is a sovereign King
There is no gauge to measure His limitless love
There is no barrier to block His blessings outpoured
He’s enduringly strong
And He’s entirely supreme
He’s internally steadfast
He’s immortally faithful
He’s imperially powerful
And He’s impartially merciful
He is Jesus, God’s Son and you can trust Him
I wish I could more accurately describe Him to you
But He’s indescribable
He’s incomprehensible
He’s invincible
He’s irresistible
You can’t out live Him and you can’t live without Him
The Pharisees couldn’t stand Him
But they found they couldn’t stop Him
Pilate couldn’t fault Him
Herod couldn’t kill Him
Death couldn’t conquer Him
And the grave couldn’t hold Him
My friends He’s the Alpha and Omega
The first and the last
He’s the God of the future and the God of the past
And we rise to speak His name again and again
Jesus!
Jesus!!
He is Jesus!
He is for us!
And we can trust Him!
©Hosanna! Music
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BOOKING NOW! Be a host site for the NEW God, Love & Marshmallow Wars Book Tour & Couples Conference:
This event helps couples understand why the daily activities found in the book will equip them to build a stronger marriage and the book provides them with 365 intentional activities to take what they learn at the event and apply it on a daily basis. Through the event, couples will discover the Biblical “why” behind the categories of activities found in the book and the “how” these activities are important to building a stronger marriage. Focus points of the event includes :
- How memorizing scripture together and studying God’s Word together as they study, meditate and apply scriptures related to marriage and life issues will help them develop marriages that honor God.
- Why utilizing fun conversation starters that spark meaningful conversations will keep interest alive as they continually learn new things about each other.
- Why keeping romance alive is essential to intimacy and connectivity.
- How making memories and working together builds relationship investment bonds and how these investment bonds can become the knots that keeps them together through the tough times.
- How they can understand what they are or are not contributing to the marriage as well as how they might be contributing to problems or potential problems within the relationship through the use of targeted, intentional personal reflections
- Why it is important that couples never stop dating and how group dates with Christian friends can be both an encouragement and accountability to their own relationship.
During the event, couples will be given an activity from each focus point to do together, making this event an interactive, fun, and engaging event with practical, hands-on learning. Unlike other couple events that are over when the event ends, couples who attend the GLMW event will be able to apply what they learn when utilizing the book on a daily basis for a year. Since the book is not dated, couples are able to reuse the activities year after year to continue being intentional in strengthening their relationship with each other and with God as they strive to live out God’s design for marriage every day.
Learn more about hosting this event at your church or conference site by clicking here.
About the book: The GLMW book contains 365 daily challenges for couples to strengthen their relationships to each other and with God. Couples will complete activities such as Scripture memory, conversation starters, relationship builders, learning about Biblical marriage, romance builders, personal reflections, and date ideas. Click here to purchase your copy. (This link will open a new widow and take you to Westbow Press’ bookstore.) It is also available at Christian Book Distributors, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble
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Looking for a keynote speaker for your next ministry event? Julia is now booking for 2019 and 2020 Christian events for women’s and couples’ ministries for both small and large events.
Book with us now.
Julia is CEO of Wellspring Christian Ministries, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people and couples develop a passionate relationship with God. A public speaker, conference trainer, event planner, and blog writer, Julia is a two-time graduate from Grand Canyon University with a bachelor in Psychology and a masters in Professional Counseling. Saved as a child and raised in church and in a Christian home and private Christian School as a Pastor’s kid, Julia has taught Sunday school, led music, played the piano, served as Children’s Director, and engaged her gifts in many other areas of church life. Previously employed with the Florida Baptist Convention, Julia organized events and led conferences for church ministry assistants. Today, Julia enjoys sharing her journey as a growing Christian with others looking for a deeper connection with God. Through Bible study and her own life experiences, God has given Julia a passion to help couples understand God’s design for marriage while they learn to place God first in their marriage, cultivate meaningful relationships, build intimacy, and address the tougher issues that come in every marriage so that they can experience a marriage that honors and glorifies God. Julia also loves mentoring, teaching, and working with women to help them learn to live as Godly women.
With her history and experience growing up in both small and large churches, Julia enjoys bringing top level quality events to churches of all sizes. Her father largely pastored small churches and therefore she understands that these vital parts of the believing community need to be good stewards of the resources God provides them with. This knowledge inspires her passion for being available with a fresh perspective for those who want to provide their congregations with meaningful spiritual growth opportunities, regardless of size.
To request more information or a booking,
fill out the online form here.
Or call us at 904.524.8073
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