Sacrifice Of Praise - Christian Daily Devotions - April 14 2007
Sacrifice Of Praise - Verse of the Day :
But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.
-Acts 16:25
Daily Bible Reading Plan
Morning : Acts 16
Evening : Ruth 3-4
Sacrifice Of Praise
Paul had just cast out a spirit of divination from a slave girl in the city of Philippi. When her masters saw that their
hope of profit was gone, they had Paul and Silas arrested, severely beaten and imprisoned.
There in the Philippian jail, instead of despairing for their lives, Paul and Silas started praying and praising God by singing hymns at the midnight hour. There are five facts about praise:
(1) Praise is always vocal. Since it is an expression of your faith--which itself is not silent--praise is never silent too.
Two Hebrew words for "praise" are shabach and halal, both implying to shout aloud noisily until it seems like you
are clamorously foolish! Paul and Silas were singing hymns so loudly in the Philippian jail that the prisoners could hear
them clearly.
April 15 - The Sacrifice Of Praise - Christian Daily Devotions
(2) Praise is a sacrifice. Hebrews 13:15 says, "Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise
to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name." It is easy to praise God when life is going well. But for praise to be meaningful, it must cost you something.
The most important time to praise God is when everything seems to go wrong, and you least feel like praising Him. Those are the moments when you praise is most precious to God. Even though they were unfairly tormented, Paul and Silas decided to praise God by their sheer willpower and faith in Him.
(3) Praise is the cure for depression. It is the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness (Is. 61:3). Praise will lift
up your spirit everytime you feel down.
(4) Praise is a powerful spiritual weapon against Satan. Psalm 8:2 says that praise is the means by which we can silence Satan, the accuser of your brethren. Literally, that means that each time you praise God, He will tell the devil to "shut
up" on your behalf.
(5) Praise prepares the way for divine supernatural intervention. The literal Hebrew text of Psalm 50:23 says, "To him who
offers praise, he prepares a way for God to show His salvation."
In the Bible we read that both Jehoshaphat and Jonah found this to be true. They had their deliverances when they started
praising God. Deep in the dungeon of Philippi, the praise Paul and Silas offered to the Lord brought about a great
earthquake that shook open the prison doors.
The next time you are serving God and things don't go the way you planned, remember to offer God your sacrifice of praise. Praise always triump gloriously!
April 15 - The Sacrifice Of Praise - Christian Daily Devotions
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