Praise, our Primary Purpose

3.2.8

fast starts tomorrow morning… devotions.

Primary focus – we were made for a relationship with Jesus.

Philippians 4:4-7

      Want to focus on the rejoicing and thanksgiving.

You can read through here again and see how they are the ground work to guard our hearts and minds.

Again from Nehemiah when the praise dies discouragement comes in.

Wednesday night talked about how with revelation comes responsibility.

      We have a big job to do here.

      We have a lot of children’s work to do

            A lot of youth work

            Men’s and women’s work to do.

      Our future doesn’t allot us down time for discouragement.

We must exercise our revelations.

      --- praise is going to precede victory.

With that in mind I am going to talk about praise for a few minutes.

We are people of agreement.

      We can chose to agree with devil/world/flesh

                  --- by doing that we give it a right, or open a path up for it to

                                                be in charge of our live.

      We can agree with God.

                  --- Praise says that I agree with something HIGHER than

                                                      what I see right now.

“Your life is never going to get any better. You have reached your greatest day.” If that’s how you feel, and agree with then you are right.

      --- if you agree your best days are ahead, your right again.

We have the choice to agree.

Praise keeps us in agreement with the Lord.

The expression of praise.

      In Psalms there are many physical expressions.

      These are things we need to begin to exercise in our life.

            Psalms 149 – dancing

            Psalms 47 clapping

            Psalms 63 lifting hands to Him

            Psalms 95 Bowing down before God

            Psalms 66 shouting to the Lord

We need to begin to exercise these at home by ourselves in our private life.

      These expressions are not pleasing at all to your flesh.

      In the beginning you will probably feel dumb.

• if you are feeling dumb about praising --- that’s probably a good start.
  • it’s causing us to extend our focus beyond us.
  • I’m not the focal point
  • If I feel dumb or hesitant I have made myself the focal point.

I have and you most likely have heard it also….. I don’t want to do something I don’t “feel” --- that’s hypocritical.

Truth is --- it’s hypocritical to only do what you feel and call yourself a believer.

      Being a believer means I BELIEVE ….

To be a Christian I did not become a “feeler” I became one who believes no matter what I see with my eyes.

            --- true rejoicing requires faith when it is the last thing you “feel”

                                                                  like doing.

            --- This is the beginning of what we call the “sacrifice of praise.”

True rejoicing requires us to acknowledge that God’s goodness and faithfulness are more real than our present difficulties

      One step farther – we begin to agree that life isn’t really about me.

Praise reminds me that life isn’t about me. 

Praise means at first to sing… make music. In it’s definition it also means to prune.

For everyone, but especially those in a difficult moment----- 

If you are in a desert or a wilderness right now, you need to do like Moses and build a tabernacle.

      Tabernacle means – a dwelling place.

Especially in difficult moments we must make our praise proportional to the level of discouragement we are feeling.

Some want God to explain Himself to them.

Why why why?

      God has this hang up.. He thinks He is God.

--- through praise we aren’t working ourselves into feeling good. We are

                  making ourselves come into agreement with God.

      The road map to God’s presence is through praise.

      --- Psalm 100:4 “Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name.”

            I will enter His gates with…..

            The deep truth is easily over looked because of it’s familiarity.

                  The power of it still remains.

            You want God in the middle of your life???

                  You need to build Him a tabernacle.

Praising God is acknowledging God’s goodness and faithfulness more than our present difficulties.

It requires us to agree that life isn’t about me!

      --- the sacrifice of praise must be done in faith….. I have to believe

                  God’s plan is bigger than what I am going through.

In that moment I begin to agree with God’s perspective in my situation.

      --- whether good or bad, I want to agree with God’s perspective.

Praise is one part of setting up your tabernacle.

  You want a tabernacle in your life.

            It helps keep you centered and balanced in life.

Praise prunes the flesh.

      Its control

      Its influence

      Its way of thinking. 

In life there are always things fighting for your attention. It’s like vines growing up over you.

                        -- praise helps to cut them away.

Praise – it’s about focus.

      It takes it off of me and my inabilities and on Him and His abilities.

Praise is a tool to encourage yourself.

It is not a trick to getting something from the Lord.

Praise encourages us by helping us to reconnect with our primary purpose.

If you are going through a difficult moment, your praise needs to be proportional to the size of the problem.

One more illustration from Psalm 86:12-13: "I will glorify your name forever. For Your lovingkindness toward me is great."

The love of God is not God's making much of us, but God's saving us from self-centeredness so that we can enjoy making much of him forever.

There will be days when we need to give praise solely because we are convinced that knowing Him is reason enough to rejoice.

Praise keeps us on our primary purpose.

A lifestyle of praise is going to keep you on track and overcome discouragement.

Over the next 3 days make sure to set aside time for praise in your private life. If you have children teach them to praise.