Praise II

There is an old chorus that we used to teach the kids in our Children’s Church classes over the years.  The lyrics go something like:

“Praise is the order of the day.

 Praise is the order of the day.

 Powers and principalities,

 They have to stay away for,

 Praise is the order of the day!” *

The words are matched to a catchy tune that just kind of sticks in your head.  It is a tune that I have unconsciously found myself singing over the last week or so.  It is a simple little song that packs a big wallop of truth!

If I have learned anything from my wife over the years, it has been the power of PRAISE to intervene and reverse the negative influences that come our way.  I have mentioned in past blog entries about the confusion that prevailed following the initial battery of tests that my wife went through in Oklahoma.  The doctor’s couldn’t seem to put a solid handle on what was going on.  One of the doctors shook his head and summed it up by basically stating that “all the test results say that she should be under 24 hour care, yet she is still functioning independently by driving, cooking, and keeping up a household.”

This confusion stayed unexplained until we finally made it to the head of the Memory Care Center in San Francisco a year ago.  After reading through all the reams of patient history and asking us many questions, she stated that the original doctors on the case must have been basing their findings on the family history of depression.  The confusion came because my wife was not responding the way one under the influence of depression would react.  As I stated previously, my wife had learned the power of PRAISE!

When I related the Specialist’s explanation to our kids last summer, they ALL agreed.  Each of them reminisced of times when depression would try to rear its ugly head in our home and how their Mom would immediately sense its presence and lead the kids into a time of joyful PRAISE.  Those moments of PRAISE always changed the atmosphere and quickly re-established the boundaries and as that simple little tune said, made it clear that, “Powers and principalities, they have to stay away, for PRAISE is the order of the day!”

Look what it did in the beginning of the New Testament when there was much confusion and disagreement as to the name that should be given to Zechariah and Elizabeth’s miracle baby.  When Zechariah took a step of faith in obedience to God and indifference to family traditions and wrote on a tablet that “His name is John” his tongue was immediately loosed and after nine months of silence, his first words were of PRAISE to God!  His PRAISE immediately reversed the atmosphere that had been charged with conflict.  Luke wrote that Zechariah’s actions and PRAISE caused “all their neighbors (to be) filled with awe.”  The people felt the presence of the Lord and Zechariah “was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, ‘PRAISE the Lord God of Israel!’…”  (Luke 1:57-80 God’s Word ©)

Over the weekend my wife and I drove over to the assisted living community where my folks are moving to at the end of the month.  My Mom has been a little confused about its location and I wanted to take a few pictures that I thought might help to refresh her memory.  It had been a long day and by the time we arrived at the adult living complex, I was tired and my patience was waning.  I stopped in the middle of the road in front of the facility in order to take a quick shot before any traffic came up behind me.  When I grabbed my little digital camera and pushed the button down half way in order to focus the picture, the lens moved in and out a few times, stopped and a little error message came up on the viewing screen saying “replace batteries.”  That was it and I snapped!  I had just recharged the batteries, but obviously they were old and not holding a charge anymore.

Expressing great frustration, I loudly exclaimed “You’ve got to be kidding!” and unceremoniously and rather roughly tossed the camera into the back seat and drove away.  When I reached the corner I turned red faced toward my wife and shook my head.  Then it came… my wife sweetly smiled and said, “PRAISE the Lord Jim!”  Even in her current condition, the power of PRAISE is so engrained in her that it was an automatic response in the midst of the heated situation.  And it worked like diving into a pool of ice water on a hot day!  Those four words instantly changed my attitude, the frustration left and we both began to laugh and utter PRAISES unto God!

I would encourage you to seriously take this into account today.  As my oldest daughter told me awhile back when faced with a similar situation, “You know Dad, this stuff really works!”  PRAISE is a tremendous power, ordained by God, that causes the negative influences in life to run and then STAY away.  If you haven’t already, I would suggest that you (just like my wife) make PRAISE the regular default reaction in your life.  Give it a try and see it work for you!  Have a wonderful day.  Stay in tune to His Word and keep asking yourself… “What am I expecting today?”

*  I believe that this song was written by David Ingles in the late 1970's