In today’s devotional, Dr. Michael Youssef shares the impact of praise in his life when facing a tragic trial.
If you would like more insight into today’s devotional topic, watch or listen to Dr. Michael Youssef’s sermon Empowered by Praise, Part 1: LISTEN NOW | WATCH NOW
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[00:00:00] You are listening to My Devotional, the daily devotional from Dr. Michael Youssef and Leading
[00:00:06] the Way.
[00:00:08] In the Storm by Dr. Michael Youssef
[00:00:13] I grew up in Egypt under the influence of a Christian family.
[00:00:16] I often sang songs of praise to God, and I would hear my mother and my grandfather praise
[00:00:22] God for hours at a time.
[00:00:24] I became a believer in Jesus Christ as a young man, but still didn't begin to grasp the true
[00:00:30] meaning of praise until the spring of 1990.
[00:00:34] That's when my lovely wife Elizabeth was diagnosed with cancer.
[00:00:39] She was barely 40 years old.
[00:00:42] My first thought was, Lord, she's too young to have breast cancer.
[00:00:46] How can this be happening?
[00:00:48] I had trouble praying without being overwhelmed with worry over what might happen.
[00:00:52] My heart was troubled.
[00:00:55] But in the midst of the terrible fear that I might lose my beloved wife, and the frustration
[00:01:00] that I could not take her place or do anything to protect her except to pray for her, I began
[00:01:06] to truly learn the power of praise.
[00:01:09] Our small congregation immediately committed to intercession.
[00:01:12] We entered God's course of instruction, Power of Praise 101, with the Holy Spirit and the
[00:01:19] Bible as our instructors.
[00:01:20] God began to take us through the first stages of learning what it means to praise Him while
[00:01:26] standing in the full force of the storm.
[00:01:29] The more we praised God, the stronger our belief grew that He is capable of all things and infinitely
[00:01:35] compassionate toward His hurting and needing children.
[00:01:39] We learned a lasting lesson during this time that my wife was battling cancer.
[00:01:44] The more we praised God, the deeper the fellowship we experienced with Him.
[00:01:49] As my wife underwent medical treatments that slowly brought physical healing, we underwent
[00:01:55] spiritual treatment that brought wholeness, hope, strength, and power to our souls.
[00:02:01] Our spiritual wholeness came about through praising Him.
[00:02:05] Our fear gave way to greater faith in God's rule over our circumstances.
[00:02:10] Praise fully established the reign of God in our lives.
[00:02:15] Ultimately, praise reinforces the truth of who we are and who God is.
[00:02:20] He alone is the one who makes us whole.
[00:02:23] He alone is the one who walks through the dark valley with us.
[00:02:26] Our faithful Lord never leaves us nor forsakes us.
[00:02:30] He alone is the source of all good things.
[00:02:33] Praise the Lord.
[00:02:35] My wife is in excellent health today.
[00:02:37] We continue to praise God, not only for her healing, but also for teaching us what it means
[00:02:42] to be empowered by praise to face any terror, threat, or problem that life may hand us.
[00:02:50] Let's pray together.
[00:02:51] Father, we praise you for your power, Almighty God.
[00:02:55] You have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm.
[00:03:01] Nothing is too hard for you.
[00:03:03] With Jesus we say, Abba Father, everything is possible for you.
[00:03:09] We pray this in the name of Jesus.
[00:03:12] Amen.
[00:03:14] If today's devotional encouraged you, we'd love to hear about it.
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[00:03:23] My devotional is a ministry of leading the way with Dr. Michael Youssef.
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