In today’s devotional, Dr. Michael Youssef reminds us that those seasons in which we do not feel like praising God are precisely the seasons when we most need to.
If you would like more insight into today’s devotional topic, watch or listen to Dr. Michael Youssef’s sermon Empowered by Praise, Part 2: 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. Life in Light of Ultimate Reality by Dr. Michael Youssef
[00:00:15] Our fears, anxieties, and hurts are very real. But if we focus only on these earthly problems,
[00:00:22] then very soon the spiritual realm becomes foggy and unreal. We lose sight of God and slide
[00:00:28] into pessimism and even depression. Life loses its joy and excitement. If we limit our thinking
[00:00:35] to this world alone, it will grind us down into the dust from which we were created. No
[00:00:41] matter how difficult or unjust our circumstances become, we can exercise our free will and choose
[00:00:47] to praise God rather than ignore Him. As we see in the Psalms, praise has a strong emotional
[00:00:55] dimension, but it is not driven by emotions. Praise is driven by our will. That's why we
[00:01:01] must never say, I prefer to wait and praise God when I feel like it. We are to praise God
[00:01:07] in all situations, in both victory and defeat, when we are in need and when we are experiencing
[00:01:13] plenty. In fact, the times when you do not feel like praising God are precisely the moments when
[00:01:19] it is the most essential to do so. The next time you are discouraged, start praising God. When you
[00:01:25] feel defeated or unable to break loose from bad habits, praise God. When your most treasured
[00:01:32] relationships seem to be falling apart, start praising God. Why do I say this? Because praise
[00:01:40] is about what God desires us to do. It is not about the power of your circumstances. When you take your eyes
[00:01:46] off your immediate problem and put your focus on God, you redirect yourself toward what God has done,
[00:01:52] is doing, and will do for you, not what man has done to you. At that point, God can work in your life
[00:01:59] to produce real growth. The truth for the believer is that this tangible physical world is not the real
[00:02:06] world. The real world is our ultimate home, the heavenly spiritual realm where God's presence
[00:02:12] permeates the atmosphere. When we start to view our present life in light of this ultimate reality,
[00:02:20] things begin to change. Faith and hope take root and flourish. Joy and peace grow in our hearts.
[00:02:28] Let's pray together. We choose to praise and serve you for the rest of our lives on earth
[00:02:34] and eternity, Lord. You are greater than our circumstances. Help us to see the spiritual realm around us
[00:02:41] and that your presence becomes our reality. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
[00:02:49] If today's devotional encouraged you, we'd love to hear about it.
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[00:02:57] My devotional is a ministry of Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Youssef.
[00:03:02] To learn more, visit ltw.org today.