The book of Exodus is the story of the deliverance of God’s chosen people, Israel. God raises up a man called Moses to go before Pharaoh and command him to release almost 3 million people. After Pharaoh forces God’s hand by rejecting Moses, Egypt is struck with ten plagues, and Pharaoh reluctantly releases the children of Israel. He then changes his mind and decides to enslave them again.
With the Red Sea in front of them and Pharaoh advancing behind them—God commands them to “move forward.” God then separates the Red Sea, the Children of Israel cross over on dry land, and the Egyptians drown in pursuit.
Chapter 15 begins with a “praise party”—“Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord: "I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted. The horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father's God, and I will exalt Him.” (Exodus 15:1-2 NIV)
Praise is a powerful weapon of our warfare. It is so important to God, that the Bible mentions it more than most other subjects—The virgin birth is mentioned twice, dancing is mentioned six times, sixty-five times the Bible commands us to shout, and sanctification is mentioned seventy-two times. But the Bible talks about singing 287 times and 332 times the Bible commands us to praise.
How quickly they went from praising to complaining...
“Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea…For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter…So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?" (Exodus 15:22-24 NIV)
Praise gets the attention of God. But the devil knows that if he can steal your praise, he can steal your joy. And if he steals your joy, he will strip you of your strength. Anyone can praise God “after the battle,” but God is looking for someone who will praise Him when everything is bitter in your life.
What the enemy is saying is—“I hear you singing now, but I want to see you praise God when there’s no money in the bank, when you can’t find a job and nothing seems to be working.”
What Satan realizes and what we tend to forget, is that praise and worship are two powerful weapons. We must learn to praise Him in the midst of our tears; praise Him when we feel like giving up; and praise Him when we can’t see our way out.
I dare you to open up your mouth and begin to praise Him.
Scripture Of The Day: “The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him." - Exodus 15:2 (NIV)
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