letting go of every fear
praising Him in Highs and Lows
The Bible says in Psalm 44:8, “In God we boast all day long and praise Your Name forever.”
We’re to boast in Him all day, everyday.
In the difficulties and the struggle, we’re to make our boast in Him because He is capable, He is gracious, He is God!
But sometimes it seems difficult to praise Him in the midst of hardship. It doesn’t come naturally, and, sometimes, it’s the last thing on our mind.
We’d rather fret and tell God our worries. There’s nothing wrong with that, but we forget we are called to remember who He is and praise Him. So how do we get to the point where we boast in God through the hard times and good times?
The truth is it’s a decision. It takes effort on our part. We have to let go of our fears and the desire to try to fix it ourselves.
Sometimes it might seem counterproductive to let go of the problems and set our mind on God. Yet, when we’re struggling, the best thing we can do is boast in the Lord and sing His praises!
When we shift our eyes to Jesus and speak of His mighty works, our faith will grow, and our confidence in God’s ability will (rightfully!) increase! Our hope will not be misplaced and glorifying Him will not be a waste of time.
Psalm 5 says, “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.”
It’s a daily habit we make for ourselves until it’s just our natural response to look up to God. The art of boasting in the Lord during difficulty only comes from training ourselves to remember His goodness, faithfulness and love and boasting in Him during the good times.
The Psalmist writes in Psalm 71, “Let my mouth be filled with Your praise and with Your glory all the day… I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness and Your salvation all the day. For I do not know their limits, I will go in the strength of the Lord God; I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only… My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long.”
Do you see a theme? He never stops praising God. He never stops boasting in the Lord.
What do you think will happen when a trial befalls him? He’s going to look up to God and praise Him because he’s trained his heart to do so.
The more you praise Jesus, the more you’ll rest and the more you’ll find peace.
All you’ll be able to see is the loving face of your Savior, your very present Help in trouble.
You’ll look to God and declare, with such fervor, His goodness, righteousness and faithfulness. They’ll never fail.
And it all starts with making your boast in Jesus today. It starts with lifting your head in the morning and looking to God. It starts with practice.
“My praise shall be in You.” (Psalm 22:25)
– Ash Knepper