Silence the Fears with Praise

Do you ever hold back praise?

Have you ever been tempted to hold back in praising God just in case or for another reason? 

Maybe it’s with thoughts like…

Let me make sure I’m not getting ahead of this…

I don’t want to speak too soon…

I remember growing up and being afraid to allow myself to feel happy or admit it, for fear that it would go away. I remember having that conversation with a friend too. We were both in high school at the time and admitted to each other happiness scared us because we were afraid of losing it. Wow! What chains to carry. Still, I bring it up and share because I pray that I use God’s Word to bring His hope to anyone who may fear that right now.

Here is the thing… being happy is a feeling. Happiness is a choice. We can’t always control circumstances but we decide how we react and what we focus on. Fear had such a hold on me back then and still TRIES too. 

I spent years not allowing myself to be happy. Been there, don’t that- and now I know that is not the way the Lord wants us to live an abundant life! 

“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

(‭‭John‬ ‭10‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

God has more for us! So much MORE!

That is what I reflected on last week when I almost did not share a piece of great news with family because I didn’t want to get ahead of everything.  

Was it fear or wisdom? 

What was I afraid of?

There it was.

Fear.

I feared enjoying what could be taken from me in a moment or having it wrong. But God… 

doesn’t He deserve our praise ALL THE TIME?!

No matter what… God is still good. He is worthy of all praise!

Here is what happened… We gave my son dairy for first time and if you know our story, our oldest had an anaphylactic reaction to it at 7.5 months a little over 8 years ago. However, we were directed by doctors to introduce it now at home to our youngest. 

So we prayed. We asked others to pray and we gave it.

I felt the fear coming at me.

So I prayed more and asked God to help me with my unbelief.

We were praying and believing for no allergies but being wise and smart in how we gave it.

Then after waiting some time, I wanted to share with close family and friends that we had successfully given the food to my son but I felt blocked. I wanted to say…

“We gave the babe dairy. God is so good!” 

Yet, I thought…

What happens if he has a reaction still?

So I PAUSED and asked God, what is stopping me from sharing?

Is it your wisdom? 

Or is it fear?

For me it was fear.

What would change if I sent that text praising God? God is still good and we still gave dairy safely. Praise God!

So I sent it because… we must NOT make decisions in or out of fear. 

Discernment is different. It is part of the gift of having the Holy Spirit within us to help us decide between what is right or wrong. 

So I share this for many reasons which are The Art of a Messy House challenge and reflection this week:

♡ Let’s reflect: Are we allowing fear to hold us back or keep us from rejoicing? Is fear making our decisions or are we being led by the Holy Spirit? (I’ll be sharing more about the gift of the Holy Spirit next week.)

♡ Chances are we will face fear. We will face unbelief. Let’s not feel guilty about it. Instead, let’s ask God to help us with it. And don’t stop praying! 

♡ This shows the importance of reading the Bible each day because it stores His Words on our hearts and in our minds. Therefore, when we pray for help with something, a verse may be brought to our attention as that very help to provide exactly what we need.

♡ Most importantly, “God is so good all the time…” Let’s praise Him. Let’s have a heart of worship that chases away the fears.

Let’s be like David and come to God with it all including a heart of worship, not allowing fear to hold back our thankfulness.

We can read Psalm 139 and use it as a model even. David shows as an image and example here of drawing near to the Lord. He shows us that even when we don’t know what to say, we can lean in to the Lord. He is our voice in those moments. Like David, we can approach God with it all.

1. He knows us.

2. He is with us.

3. He has made us.

4. We can bring our pleas and our praises.

What are we approaching God with today? Whatever decision or choice it is, big to small, talk to Him. And as we walk and talk with Him, let’s remember to praise God.

Let’s pierce the ears of the enemy with psalms of praise for God is always good. So, let’s not wait, what you praising God for right here right now?

Dear God,

You are our Help and loving Father. You provide us wisdom and strength. You provide for us love, power and self discipline. I lift up whatever it is I am trying to decide on or anything that I am holding. I give it to You. Help me make wise choices that honor You. I praise You for You are always good through it all. I praise You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” (2 Timothy‬ ‭1‬:‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29‬:‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬)

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God bless!