03/11/2010 - THE POWER OF PRAISE

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Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance. (Psalm 42:5)

When our soul is cast down it means the devil is using one of his strategies to attack us. He knows that he cannot affect us directly so, indirectly, he uses some tricks to try to separate us from God. One such means is the terrible sorrow of our soul, which causes a loss of interest in the divine things, and some people even blame the Lord for the misfortunes that befall them.

He whose soul is cast down becomes so aloof that he is not able to resist temptations and does not take possession of what belongs to him. His soul is troubled, he is always upset and ill-humored and he blames the others for his failures. These things may even cause his body to perform poorly some of its functions – for example, it may start to produce a high rate of hormones or stop providing what is needed for its well functioning.

The Christian who fails to have communion with the Lord is sowing bad seeds; it is the lack of intimacy with the Father that makes the soul be cast down and not the other way around. He whose life is based on the Word and prays constantly keeps the enemy away. If he happens to fall into transgression, he will soon afterwards draw near God, confess his sin and ask Him for forgiveness. But if he lets the flesh exert dominion over him and heeds the counsel of the evil one, his fellowship with the Almighty will be suspended, and his soul will be cast down.

Every time you feel uninspired to pray, read the Bible or go to church, and praise the Lord. Soon joy will overflow in your spirit and your soul will begin to rejoice. It is a contagious happiness because once you have it your soul is uplifted and any bad influence ceases to torment you.

It is important to point out that praise should be done for the help of the Lord’s countenance. We must seek His presence, because it gives us deliverance from the traps the opponent sets up to us. Then, in the help of God’s countenance we summon enough courage to face challenges and overcome them. Without it, it becomes difficult to maintain communion with the Father, but when He is with us we have the strength to rise up, we become brave and whatever was threatening us and seemed impossible to overcome becomes a grain of sand.

My dear brethren, he who lives in communion with God is never discouraged; rather, he is strengthened every time he opens his heart to the Lord. A simple reading of the Scriptures cheers us up, a visitation of our Master brings tears to your eyes, and words spoken in tongues bring a sense of peace and certainty of victory. So if you want the blessings of God in your life, seek intimacy with the Father right now!

In Christ with love,

R. R. Soares