Reply To: Prayer Basics Discussion Board 1

[saysay]

NAME: Sarah Ajakaiye
COURSE: PRAYER BASIC- PB – 205 – LC
LECTURERS: PASTOR NKECHI & PASTOR SOLA
QUESTION: WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO PRAISE GOD FOR YOUR ANSWERS BEFORE YOU SEE THEM?

WHAT IS PRAISE?
Praise is the expression of approval or admiration for someone or something. Expression of respect and gratitude as an act of worship (Oxford Dictionary).
Praise is lifting God. It is a joyful recounting of what God has done for us. Praise and thanksgiving go hand-in-hand. It is offering appreciation for who He is. Praise is the acknowledgment of God’s wonderful, righteous deed (Psalm 18”3).
I used to have a younger sister with Down syndrome. At that time, whenever my mother bought her something from the market, she would jump from her seat and scream Mummy! Mummy!! Thank! Thank you!!, and be mothering words which we don’t hear clearly. Sometimes she bursts into songs, and my mum will be excited and sometimes start crying. When we ask her why she is crying, she will say it’s the way she expresses the joy of receiving the gift. On other days, when she returns from the market with nothing, she will still chant the mummy thing! In expectation. That trill my mum and that makes her keep buying things for her to our envy. If praise is this important to humans how much more God?
Praise is the demonstration of an unwavering belief in God’s goodness and power, even amidst trials and tribulations. You shift your focus from the challenges you are facing to the goodness of God, finding comfort, hope, and renewed strength in His promises.
Your praise aligns your heart with God’s and find solace as you wait. Through praise, you can experience the transformative power of faith and witness how God works wonders when it looks like there’s no hope. You stir God through praise because God will always do what He has promised. 2 Chronicles 20:15-22.
God takes pleasure in our praise. Pastor Charles said in one of His messages, that you put God in a state of “scenty”. God inhabits the praise of His people Psalm 22:3.
Andrew Wommack in his book “Effect of Praise” says living a life of praise is not only the most enjoyable way to live, but it’s also one of the most powerful ways to challenge your life. Praise isn’t like the caboose {slang} that just follows what happens but it’s more like the engine of a train that makes things happen. Your faith is incomplete without praise. Colossians 2:6-7. You don’t only walk in faith, see that it ends in thanksgiving. When you operate in praise and thanksgiving, it removes your attention from the problems and causes your faith to overflow.
When you praise you create an atmosphere for what He has said. God told Abraham, that He would be the father of many nations according to what God had said. (Romans 4: 17-20). Abraham believed in God against all odds. Abraham rendered sacrifices unto God while he waited. He stood on the integrity of god’s word. Praise is the last test of your miracle. However, praise is a hard form of faith as you wait for the manifestation. Psalm 34:1.
Your faith appropriates and takes possession of what Jesus has already done. Your praise will cause your faith to thrive if you know that praise is born out of a relationship. As a result, you want to know more about God and His goodness.
Praise redirects your attention towards God and it’s going to build your faith to receive the expected answer.
In conclusion, praise is an integral part of prayer. The Bible made us to understand that you can pray amidst James 4:3 but you cannot praise amidst. When you praise God, it will cause you to focus on God more and what God has to say concerning that expectation(s), the Word is so good. During praise is when you put your gaze on God’s Word, the Word is the factor that can make you wait or go through things.