Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Worship as a Weapon ~ Day 3


Yesterday we talked about praising God with song and dance. Today I thought we could talk about how we could use that praise and worship as a weapon.

Ephesians 6:11-12 says
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Like it or not, we are soldiers in a war. Not a flesh and blood war, but an invisible war of the heart, mind, and soul. If you don't arm yourself, if you are to busy today to put on the armor of God, then you have left yourself unarmed in a battle that is being fought TODAY whether or not you're busy.

In 2 Chronicles 20 there is an amazing story about how God won a battle for an entire army of men while they sang praise to him. Really, go read it. Pay special attention to verse 22.

2 Corinthians 10:4 says
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

The weapons we fight with - praise and worship, the scriptures, prayer - they have the power to demolish strongholds. We take this for granted, don't we? If you were part of a flesh and blood war, wouldn't you do everything you could to win? Wouldn't you choose the best sword, sharpen it, practice with it daily? Would you ever say "Sorry, I am too busy cleaning my house today to worry about this silly war." NO! Yes, there is a time for daily tasks but Christ must always be the priority.

I think there must be some people reading this that think maybe God is selfish. He wants us to prioritize him over everything? Spend time with him every day? Sing about/to him? Doesn't he realize I have stuff to do? I feel that God wants you to know that he's worried about you. Like a father watching his daughter go to war, he wants you to be armed properly. He loves you so much.

Today I was having one of those mornings. I woke up too early, came down to a too messy house, had to hold the baby while I started the laundry because she kept trying to eat the dog food, then came in the living room to my two year old drawing on my couch and planner with a green pen. Oh dear God, give me patience.


Then while I was emptying the dishwasher I was being bombarded with "Mom, mom, mooooom, mama, moooommm, more chochochate miwk pwease?! mom! mom?" I had definitely reached my boiling point. So I took a deep breath and instead of exploding, I sang.
I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart,
I will enter His courts with praise,
I will say this is the day that the Lord has made,
I will rejoice for He has made me glad.

I wish I could say it was a magic fix-all for my day. My children are feeling extra needy today, my house is still a mess, and I have a killer headache. However, it really did change my attitude. Every time I feel myself becoming cranky again I just sing it again and again. Its hard for negative thoughts to remain where there is praise to God.

Today I will draw closer to God by continuing to sing praise through the rough spots. Standing firm when Satan attacks me and tries to cause disharmony in my home.


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4 comments:

  1. Hi!
    Thank you so much for this series, it is really great, I love today's post and am really gonna try the singing way out of temper issues. Thank you again, God bless

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    1. Thanks for your support! Let me know how praising through the tough times works for you!

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  2. Ashley,
    You will love seeing that green art work on your goals list in the years to come. I had to smile about the incident as I keep our 2 yr. old g.son, Will, and I had left my Bible open on my computer table and he had scribbled all over Ps. 37; may he one day inscribe Jesus's Word into his heart.
    I reread 2 Chron. 20, and I had v. 21 underlined, so I was excited to reinforce in my brain how praising God in worship of song is pleasing to Him!!! I sing with Will when we are playing or outside about Jesus, and he loves it. The next time I become "unglued", I'm going to break out in worship to the Lord!!! I never thought of doing that; I like the idea.
    Thank you so much for posting every day; I love your art work too, and I am trying to memorize the scripture that you post with the pic. I strolled throught the "31 days..." on Ann Voskamp's website and checked yours off to go back to and check out. God knew that I would learn from you; so, again thank you for your relationship with the Lord. I like your bluntness about spending time with God every day!!!! He has to be first in our lives!!! I only wish I had seen that need when I was your age with my 2 young children instead of waiting until I retired from teaching of 31 yrs. You must know that God delights in you and your love and devotion to Him. (Zeph. 3:17--one of my favs)
    Until next time,
    Mema Jeanne

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    1. I SO appreciate your words of encouragement. I hope to memorize all the verses too. I have really enjoyed creating the art, it wasn't something I had planned in the beginning but I'm very glad God led me to do it. Thanks again for your encouragement! Hope to see your comments again in the future. :)

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