THOUGH............YET

As the world turns......not that isn't what I was going to say but it made me laugh.

Our world is turning and continuing on and people are seemingly more upset and worried and fearful. Yet God is still on His throne, His Word is still true and He will accomplish all He has said.

And we have decisions to make regarding all that is going on. Will we allow all the destructive forces of hell to get at us or will we choose to walk God's way.......

This Thursday a women's meeting with a special Prophetess is to be held at my home. The attacks to stop this are mounting, including trying to give me a cold, BUT GOD . . . I am praising Him today and thinking about praise and thanksgiving. Peace that I did not have when I woke up is starting to spread through me.

All that let me to thinking about how we are to do everything without grumbling or complaining and how God inhabits the praises of His people. Then the term "sacrifice of praise" came to me and right after "sacrifice of thanksgiving". And of course that brought more thoughts and questions. Graham Cooke talks about lamentation being the highest form of praise because everything in us is crying out for some terrible reason. For him it was when his very dear friend was murdered in Ireland and the last thing he wanted to do was praise or worship God and that is how he found out about lamentation from a personal perspective. In Job we find, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him..." Though the stock market crashes and I have no money I will praise Him because His plans for me are good and not evil...if that happened could we say that and mean it? Though the men in Washington give more money to corrupt executives and want all my pay check to pay for it.....would we praise God? Though______ you fill it in and see if you will say Yet will I praise Him???? My prayer is He will strengthen me to say that.

Psalm 107
22And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing (KJV)

The word "sacrifice" means to slaughter and in the OT an animal was slaughtered. The sacrifice of thanksgiving went along with the sacrifice of peace (Lev 7). But Jesus shed His blood for us. There is no need now for the blood to be shed. Yet, our "flesh" must die.

When I am really emotionally upset the last thing I want to do is praise or be thankful; I want to wallow and make someone suffer (sure not Godly), yet if I focus on who Jesus is, what He has done, or what He is doing I'm offering my flesh and my ways up to be killed off and speaking out all the good and wonderful things about Jesus I find peace. There is only good to be said about Him. Phil 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things". He is the only one who fits this description. All He does fits this description.

The enemy of our souls hates us with a white hot hatred. BUT GOD's love is stronger, more powerful and it is victorious. It is imperative that we focus on Jesus..........He does inhabit our praises.