~ Open in Prayer ~
Icebreaker
•Share some good news or something you’re thankful for.
•What excites you most about Spring?
• Did you get to see the solar eclipse?
Message Review
We have to understand the “why” behind our praise in order for us to fully benefit from it. God inhabits the praises of His people, so if praise is absent there will be no move of God. Praise is a sacrifice, and you will have to let your feelings go in order for true praise to go forth and inhabit your environment.
Let’s dig in more…
Psalm 22:3 (KJV) reads…
“But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.”
You can’t fully possess a thing until you fully understand it. You have to understand the “why” behind it for it to really benefit you and impact your life. We praise so God can inhabit our environment. It’s all about God inhabiting our praise, and for Him to inhabit our praise we have to worship in Spirit and in truth and continuously. If there is no praise there is an absence of God because He lives in praise. You are in control of the size of God you experience. We will experience as much of God as we praise. Why is praise and worship important? What’s your praise life like?
Pastor Ron spoke about “the sacrifice of praise.” Our praise requires a sacrifice…a dying of something within us. The concept of “sacrifice” means something has to die. Something internal that’s going on within us has to die in order for our praise to be consistent with who He is. Your praise cannot ebb and flow with your week. Your praise and worship should be objective not subjective to your present mood or circumstance.It has to be “settled” that He is worthy of your highest praise no matter what is happening around you. You don’t worship God out of feelings. You worship Him because of who He is and because He is worthy. Do you find your praise is contingent upon how you feel? Is it settled in you that He is worthy of your highest praise no matter what?
God will wait for you to slay that negative emotion. He will turn it around when you praise Him not due to your circumstance but because He simply deserves it and is worthy of it. In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus was filled with a “I don’t want to” but He said “nevertheless…not my will.” He slayed His negative emotion. He was fully human yet He sacrificed for us on the cross. You have to come in with a “nevertheless” praise. I may be going through this tough situation right now, but “nevertheless” I will praise you Lord with my whole body, mind, and spirit. How can we get to the point where our praise is a “nevertheless” type of praise?
Read Acts 16:16-36
In the passage we read that Paul and Silas were beaten and put in prison for delivering the girl, stripping her of her ability to tell fortunes. The people were profiting from this and got angry at Paul and Silas. But as they were sitting in prison, they started praising God and the prison doors broke open. They were freed and the jailer was saved that day. Our praise is powerful and can do powerful things. When we start praising, God inhabits our environment. Their environment wasn’t big enough for God so He had to break out of those small jail cells. Your praise will make room for God and break chains. Praise is reproductive and is impactful beyond the moment. Our praise shifts atmospheres and changes lives. Have you experienced the impact of praise and worship? What was that impact?
Prayer Focus and Requests
Ask your members if they have any prayer requests or praise reports. Pray that they would offer a sacrifice of praise beyond their current understanding and circumstance.
Scripture References
Psalm 22:3 “KJV” version
Acts 16:19
Acts 16:25-31
Mark 10:46-52
Psalm 149