The Praise Option
10. And now, behold, the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, whom You would not allow Israel to invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them.
11. Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come and cast us out of Your possession, which You have given to us for an inheritance.
12. O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no might against this great company that has come against us, nor do we know what to do: but our eyes are upon You.
13. And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
20. And they arose early in the morning and went forth to the wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem; believe in the Lord your God, so shall you be established; believe His prophets, so shall you prosper.”
21. After they consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the Beauty of Holiness, as they went out ahead of the army, and to say, “Praise the Lord; for His Mercy endures forever.”
22. And when they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.
2 Chronicles 20:10-13, 20-22
The Impact of Praise
Evangelist and author, Andrew Womack, made an interesting comment on the power of praise.” “Praise affects every aspect of life as well as every accomplishment in life” … “Praise affects you, praise affects the devil, and praise affects God.” “It is also true of the lack of praise.” It is incredible to think about the power of praise. It is also incredible to think about the impact of the lack of praise. If praises don’t go up, what happens to our spirit, what happens to our enemies, what happens in the Throne Room of God?
In my research, I noted that many on-line companies and tech firms are developing what is known as “praise software” as an incentive to keep workers encouraged and upbeat during stressful work situations. Microsoft® has developed the format so that anyone who wants to praise someone can simply select the “praise option” in the Microsoft Teams format, and then select the person for whom the praise is directed, select the praise image, type why they are praising the person, copy anyone else in the team, and hit send. The praise will go out to that person as well as others on the team. How neat is that?
Croft Pentz (the author of 1001 Things Your Mother Told You and You Didn’t Listen) gave this thoughtful quote, “Praise, like sunlight, helps things grow.” If praise is something that promotes growth, why is praise limited to worship in Church? Even then, it is often stifled by attitude and other minor issues that rob us of true praise. Perhaps more thought needs to be given to our “praise option.” If this praise impacts everything in life, if praise impacts the devil’s influence on my life, and if praise recognizes the Power of God’s Spirit over my life, why would I even think of limiting praise to just worship services? How can I make better use of the “Praise Option?”
Something Happens When God’s People Give Praise
Throughout the Scriptures, God’s people have found that situations changed in their favor when they invoked the “Praise Option.” Praise is not only a result of faith, but praise has been the expression of faith. When Abram returned to the land God promised after departing for a time to Egypt, he erected altars to praise God with sacrifices. While in Egypt, Abram did not build altars and as a result almost lost his wife. When he returned to Canaan, he determined to honor and give praise to God by building these altars. What happened as a result? God blessed him and caused him to increase in riches as a result of praise. It was ultimately through that same praise that Abram’s confidence in God became strong. The more he remembered God, the more Abram trusted God and became known as “God’s friend.” Ultimately, the Lord blessed him and Sarai with the promised child despite the impossibility they faced of age and barrenness. There is nothing too hard for God, but if we don’t develop our praise life, we will not realize these blessings of God. While our praise lifts the Name of God higher than our situation, it also lifts our spirit above those situations and trials. Something happens when God’s people offer praise.
This passage in 2 Chronicles 20, brings us into a situation involving Abraham’s descendants. After centuries of living in the Promised Land, the neighboring countries of Moab, Ammon, and Mount Seir, decided to launch a military assault on the Israelite Nation and take their possessions and land. The Scripture tells us that the army they assembled was massive and powerful. They entered the valley of Engedi with one thought in mind: to wipe Israel off the face of the earth and occupy their land. King Jehoshaphat and all of Judah were filled with fear. “They did not know what to do” but one thing they did not do, they did not panic. Instead, they prayed and asked for God’s guidance. They exercised their one option in seeking God’s help. Rather than thinking they had run out of options and then turn to God, they decided they would invoke the “Praise Option.”
Something wonderful happens when God’s people offer praise. The King presented his petition before the Lord. “O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no might against this great company that has come against us, nor do we know what to do: but our eyes are upon You” … And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children. Notice something wonderful in this passage; every bit of self-sufficiency had been removed. The King and all the people of Judah are totally helpless and totally depended upon God.
Regardless of how wonderful praise is, no matter how powerful the impact of praise can be, the Praise Option cannot be engaged if it is rooted in self-dependence or self-righteousness. Neither will work in stressful situations. Let me digress from Jehoshaphat and Judah for a moment to tell you what happened on a separate occasion when Abraham’s descendants were invaded by their enemies. During the time of Judges, when the high priest Eli served as Israel’s judge, the Philistine nation had invaded Israel. The army of Israel had lost a couple of major battles, when they realized that they had a Praise Option. Rather than prepare their hearts before offering praise to God, Eli’s son’s, Hophni and Phinehas, grabbed the Ark of the Covenant and rushed out to face the Philistines. When the Ark reached the Israelite camp, we are told that Israel’s army shouted so much that the earth shook. But on the day of battle, Israel was defeated, and the Ark of the Covenant was taken. How could that happen? Didn’t they praise God? Yes, they praised God, but their hearts were not right. They gave hypocritical praise. Hophni and Phinehas were wicked priests, and they did they did not take the steps to lead the army to seek God’s forgiveness before seeking God’s victory in battle. Their decision to use the Praise Option did not work because they did not seek the Lord with their whole heart. 1 Samuel 4:3-11.
Jehoshaphat and Judah’s situation was different. They got their hearts right first and then invoked the praise option. They realized they only had one opportunity to get the praise right. They all stood before God but not in their own strength. As the King presented his case before God, he also laid the problem squarely in God’s Hands. Whenever you and I invoke the Praise Option with a pure heart, God listens, and God responds.
What happened next was incredible. First, God responded to their request with a Word of consolation. God used a Levite named Ja-ha-ziel to assure the King and the people that everything was going to be alright. They were commanded, “Thus says the Lord, do not be afraid nor be dismayed as a result of this multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s … You go down tomorrow against them as they come up by the cliff of Ziz … You shall not need to fight in this battle … You stand still and see the Salvation of the Lord with you. Wow! What a message. The same confidence building Word is available for us if we would invoke the Praise Option. Remember how we said praise impacts God? Well, the Lord was moved to reveal the battle plan as the people offered praise. As the people honored God by preparing their hearts for praise, God revealed the plan and gave them insight. It must have been something to hear that they did not need to fight, and the battle belonged to God.
That report was so profound that Jehoshaphat and all the people fell before the Lord in worship and the Levites started shouting with a loud voice to honor God. They were giving God praise and the battle had even started. Then again, why wait to give God praise when He has already given the outcome of the battle?
Praise is Power-filled
Praise also impacts the one who offers the praise. Jehoshaphat was so moved by the Lord’s Word, that he gave the people his own word of encouragement. The second result of the Praise Option is it gives us the ability to encourage others. Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem; believe in the Lord your God, so shall you be established; believe His prophets, so shall you prosper.”
In his book Overcomer, Dr. David Jeremiah tells the story of a ninety-two year old Pauline Jacobi. In November 2007, Mrs. Jacobi had just finished putting her groceries in the car and gotten seated in the driver’s seat when a man jumped in the other side of the car and demanded money. “I have a gun and I’ll shoot if you don’t give me money,” he said. Mrs. Jacobi responded to the man calmly, “if you kill me, I’ll go to Heaven and you will go to hell … Jesus is in this car, and He goes with me everywhere I go.” Strangely, the man started crying and for the next ten minutes Pauline Jacobi ministered to the man about faith in God. Pauline Jacobi invoked the Praise Option that not only kept her from being robbed but testified to a would be robber. That’s God, but that’s also the power of praise.
The third and final point is that the Praise Option impacts the enemy. We have just seen one example in the previous story, but the text provides a powerful testimony of what happened as the praises went up to God. The text revealed as the people worshipped, the Lord gave them a Word of Consolation and that they did not need to fight because the battle was not theirs, but the battle was the Lord’s. Then as the people worshipped God, king Jehoshaphat gave the people a Word of Encouragement to remind them to “believe in the Lord and His prophets.” But the story does not end with the Praise impacting God nor does it end with praise impacting them personally. The praise option goes further onto the scene of the battle. The Bible says the King rearranged the army procession so that the singers went out in front. If they did not need to fight, the soldiers wouldn’t be needed on the front lines. Instead, they put the praise band in front and then they went down to the cliff of Ziz. And when they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.
When the people praised God, the Lord unleashed His fury on the enemy. God sent ambushments, meaning a surprise attack, on the enemy but it was not released until the praises began. My final word of encouragement is that we should apply the Praise Option to everything in life not just our life struggles. After all, it is no secret what God can do. Let’s give God our praise and watch what happens to your problems. Use the Praise Option. When the enemy of your soul tells you to come out with your hands up in surrender, do just that. Come out with your hands up “Praising God.”