INTRODUCTION
Welcome to a new week of TOTAL EXPERIENCE influenced by God’s Word. In this series on PRAISING YOUR WAY TO VICTORY, we have established that a lifestyle of praise is fundamental to enjoying unstoppable and unending Victories in your life. Furthermore, it’s important to reiterate that being praiseful is not spontaneous, accidental or by happenstance. It is an attitude that must be consciously cultivated, deliberately sustained and practically expressed irrespective of prevailing circumstances in your life.
In this edition of our discourse, we will be focusing on those anti-Praise toxins, already highlighted in part one, which if not dealt with are capable of draining you of the energy of victory inducing praise lifestyle.
REFUSE TO MURMUR
No matter what challenges you are going through, you must make up your mind not to descend to the low of murmuring and complaining. Murmuring expresses lost of excitement and being discontented. Remember the scripture says it’s godliness and contentment that is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6). So, murmuring and complaining do not bring gain. It is rather a loss. Murmuring is a protest against divine order and processes. Murmuring is your reaction against God’s way. You must understand that God’s way is what gives us access to God’s wonders. To reject God’s way by an attitude of murmuring is to deny yourself access to His wonders in your life. Why you need to quit the camp of murmuring is that that act is a toxin that drains the energy required to move forward. In other words, murmuring doesn’t change that immediate situation or circumstance. Instead, it complicates it and makes it extremely difficult for you to discover your way around it. It gets you stuck in a situation longer than God would have you be in that situation.
DEAL WITH FEAR AND ANXIETY
Fear and anxiety are twin weapons of the enemy against the victory of Believers. Fear and anxiety puts you under so much tension and pressure that you can lose sight of the possibility of victory in any given situation. Don’t be intimidated by any situation. That’s exactly what fear seeks to achieve…intimidate and scare the hope-life out of you. One thing about your fear is its assuming posture. Most times, your fear is not as real or as sizeable as it wants you to think. Fear gets you confused and saps you of the energy to conquer challenging situations. Fear and anxiety are the short cuts to failure and frustration. If you really want to have unstoppable, ceaseless victories, then confront your fear and starve your anxiety. In Proverbs, the Preachers tells us that fear is a snare. It seeks to trap you and hedge you in, frustrated with that situation. In Ephesians, the scripture admonished us to be anxious for nothing. Fear and anxiety doesn’t add anything to your life and progress. Instead, it takes away from you.
REFUSE DEPRESSION
Depression is a serious psychologically induced condition that can seriously stand in the way of a Praise lifestyle. Understanding what depression is and the impacts on life generally will help brace us up to refuse and fight against it. Depression, according to a dictionary, is a state of mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life or inability to visualize a happy future. It is a period of unhappiness or low morale which lasts longer than several weeks and may include ideation of self-inflicted injury or suicide. Studies have shown that depression is presently one of the world’s most ravaging illnesses. It’s so universal that it has refused to respect socio-economic, geo-political, religious and ethnic boundaries and diversities. Depression is said to be number one cause of suicide. Unfortunately, even people with strong affinity to faith and religion have not been spared from the scourge of depression. Recognizing depression as a psychosomatic illness gives us clues on how to deal with it. In other words, it is not a medical condition that can be primarily treated with drugs and pharmaceutical prescriptions. It is a psychological condition influenced primarily by out state of mind and emotional strength. Therefore, the first antidote to depression is paying good attention to your mind. The Bible says “let this mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus.”- Philippians 2:5. In other words, we must consciously cultivate the mindset of Christ. This mindset is purpose-driven not circumstances-centered. This mindset is Joy-saturated not mere conditional happiness pursuing. This mindset is rooted in a deep spiritual encounter. This is the kind of mind you need to beat the raging scourge of depression. The temptation to slide into depression should be rejected totally because it’s the devil’s strategy to kill any chance and hope left to reclaim whatever is yours he may have tampered with. Depression is the reason for failure. Depression is the reason for stagnation in life. Refuse to be depressed.
WHY ARE PEOPLE DEPRESSED?
Naturally, there are a lot of factors and conditions which if not managed properly can cause depression. Some people feel that life is unfair to them. This can lead to depression. Some are depressed because of their families. Some are depressed because of their jobs or businesses. To some, they feel that even God is not fair to them. This is however a lie from the devil. Do not allow the lies of the devil deceive you. Our God is a faithful God.
He gave you the gift of life. He raised you from the dust according to Psalm 113:7, NLT. “He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump”. Instead of finding reasons to be depressed, please find reasons to Praise God. Praise Him from the depth of your heart. Thank Him because whatever you are today, He made you. Only the living can praise God and only the praiseful can keep living.
Every breath you take makes you a debtor to God in praise.
REFUSED TO BE OFFENDED
Offence is the natural attitude and reaction in difficult times. It is a negative reaction to unpleasant conditions. Offense is a reaction against your helper, thereby rendering you completely helpless.
The offended says: Why me? Where is God? Where is the fulfillment of His words? Can I really count on Him? The offended would always have many unanswered questions that will kill the joy and excitement of living. The offended can not find reasons to praise God and be thankful. When you are offended sorrow occupies the place of joy in your heart. The Bible says in James 5:13, – Is any Merry? Let him sing…. Praise is only for the merry heart.
Joy provokes praise. Don’t allow any situation close your mouth. Patience is the solution to frustration. Lift your voice and praise the King of kings. Praise is the cheapest way to live.
Praise is the culture of the kingdom of God. Praise is the supernatural vehicle for signs and wonders. One of the responsibilities of humanity to God is praise. As believers, we were redeemed by God to show forth His praise in our generation. 1Peter 2:9.NLT. “But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for He called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light”. Praise is the debt we owe God. Psalm 150:6.NLT. “Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord! Praise the Lord! We were created as God’s original instrument of praise. Considering the present situation of things in our society and world at large, so many people have lost the courage of hoping for a better tomorrow. Some others including believers, have given into constant complaining and murmuring. But I tell the truth, that is not the way to go and be victorious. In everything, respond with praise because Jesus cannot mismanage your life. Until God is defeated, it is impossible to defeat a praising Christian or family. As believers, we should not be consumed by the prevalent circumstances surrounding us. But we should constantly give glory to God. Hallelujah!
DECISION TIME
The best gift of life is time. The best gift of time is now. The best use of now is the decision to secure and prepare for eternity. If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, please don’t let this moment pass you. You’re just a decision away from a secured eternity. You can pray this prayer to surrender to Jesus: “Lord Jesus, I believe you died for me. I accept you into my life as my Saviour and Lord. Forgive my sins and give me power to live for you the rest of my life on earth”. Amen. Congratulations! If you have prayed this prayer, you are now born again. You can contact us to let us know about your decision or visit us at the address above to learn more on how to grow in your Christian life. God bless you.