I wanted to move on and keep praying but my heart and mind was stuck in that glorious veil of understanding. Why this passage spoke clearly to me today and not before is a story for another time.
It has been such a rough year for so many of us. I have heard your stories, I have cried with you on the phone, I have cried after we've talked on the phone. All the prayer requests laden with fear, anxiety, doubts about the future or doubt about the presence (or goodness) of God Himself. So many who carry a yoke that chafes and crushes what mustard-sized faith there is left.
I have been there, many times, more than I would care to discuss. And this passage, praise to foil the enemy, it resonates with me, now more than at anytime. Not too long ago, I have lamented the ability to praise when times are rough. It's hard to count your blessings when it seems you have given all. The widow's mite is your story, your woes make Job's life seem like a cake walk.
And yet time and time again Scripture reminds - "rejoice always, pray unceasingly. In all circumstances, give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus." It cannot be more plain (and more ambitious!) than that. The balm of praise, thanksgiving and praying seems simple but there is a sting to the application. Our will protests until protesting in itself becomes tiresome.
Even in the simplest of things the foe and the rebel (Satan and his minions) gets us. He wears down our resolve in front of the mounting laundry, the never-ending to-do lists, the misbehaving children, the Joneses next door who seem to have it all together.
This life is hard. The older I get the more I understand that truth. It is hard but not completely void of goodness. There is promise in those words...PRAISE to foil the enemy.
Praise focuses our minds away from the self-loathing and pity. With heaven in sight, the theological virtue of hope waters that mustard seed of faith. And with faith, the ability to love once again, to recognize the face of God in the midst of the storms of life. Praise also refreshes our memories of those who have gone this way before us. Paul and Silas in jail, Daniel in the lion's den, the many martyrs and saints who have died singing and praising. Our white martyrdom should be no different, it should also be soaked in praise.
My prayer is to always be found with virtue no matter what challenges this life may bring. Today I am adding praise to help boost virtue in silencing the enemy.
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