Friday, January 20, 2023

Why the Enemy Hates our Praise

 



By: Sarah Geringer


Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
    praise him in his mighty heavens!
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
    praise him according to his excellent greatness!
Psalm 150:1-2 ESV

I learned something new in a book I was reading last night. When the devil was first created, he was an angel placed in authority over others. You can read more about this in Ezekiel 28.

Angels automatically give God praise. They don't really have a choice over it, though of course it is their great delight as God's servants. As a leader over other angels, it's conceivable that Satan may have led other angels in praise and worship before he turned from God and fell from heaven.

Once Satan fell and took many angels with him (Rev. 12:9). The devil and the wayward angels no longer praised God, but lived according to their own evil desires. It's been that way since before the world was created.

The more I thought about it, the more I started to understand something new. Though we human beings are created in the image of God and placed above angels in God's hierarchy of creation (Ps. 8:4-6), through the gift of free will, we have the choice whether to praise God or not. That's more freedom and choice than the angels have!

Why the enemy hates our praise - and how to do it more often to fight back against his schemes.
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In the past year, I've learned to fight back against the enemy's schemes with praise. You can read my related post HERE about the time I got this started. It has felt empowering to exercise my choice to praise God when my situation felt so defeating.

One of the ways I remember to fight back against the enemy's schemes with praise is while driving. Since I work from home, I don't drive every day. So it's easy to remember to turn on my praise music playlist and sing along in my car, especially as I pass places where I know the enemy is at work.

I encourage you to pair a daily activity with praise. Maybe you could sing praises in the shower or while you cook dinner. Perhaps praising God will work for you while you take a daily walk outdoors. Think of the best time you can praise God along with music, or simply recite your own unique praises to him from your daily experiences.

Remember that every time you praise God, you fight back against the enemy's schemes. The Bible tells us that when we resist the devil, he will flee from us (James 4:7). I can't think of a more pleasant and uplifting way to engage in spiritual warfare against the enemy. Let's give him reason to flee from us by praising God as honestly and fervently as we can, since we have the choice to do so as women made in the image of God.

Read more ways to fight back against the enemy's schemes in THIS POST.



 
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Reflection questions:

1. What battle are you facing right now that would be easier to handle if you fight back with praise?
2. What is the easiest task you can pair with praise so you are reminded to praise God daily?
 
Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

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