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A Determination to Praise Him!

John Dickson has a lot of great stories and insights on praise and worship that can help us as we develop our discipline of praising seven times a day. Here is one he shares in our book, The Worship Warrior.

For several years I owned and operated a Christian bookstore. This was a wonderful experience, but there was a time when the store went through a financial crisis. I thought it was going to go under. It was a time of great stress and anxiety. A feeling of dread burned in the pit of my stomach, but the Lord instructed me to go to the store two hours before it opened each day and walk around inside and lift my hands and praise Him. My heart was like wax within me, my hands felt like lead weights, my mouth was like sawdust. Fear and dread were in my thoughts, not praise. But I knew what I needed to do. Job had testified, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15). I began to walk around, praising at the top of my lungs. Like David, I said, “Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name” (Ps. 103:1). Sometimes we just have to tell our soul what to do. Our soul does not always feel like praising Him. As I praised Him as an act of my will, my spirit began to awaken inside me. As my soul began to line up with my proclamations, a flow of anointing began to be released. The oppressive cloud would lift, and the presence of God would come into my store. Over time the business turned around, and I knew it was not because of my keen business acumen. I am a worship leader. I can barely balance my checkbook. I could write three songs in the time it takes me to struggle through my bank statement. It was the Lord. He turned my circumstances around because I praised Him in the hard place.

So what I do as a worship leader was not learned on the stage, but in daily life. That is where our worship should be the strongest and the most vibrant. It is not our musical training that qualifies us as worshipers, but our sold-out hearts for God.  In The Unquenchable Worshipper,  Matt Redman writes: “The heart of God loves a persevering worshipper, who though overwhelmed by many troubles, is overwhelmed even more by the beauty of God.”

When Paul and Silas were beaten and thrown in jail, they were found praising (see Acts 16:25). Jonah praised from the belly of a whale (see Jon. 2). When they were flogged, Peter and the apostles rejoiced that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for Jesus’ name (see Acts 5:40-41). Peter later wrote:  “In this [our salvation] you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:6-7, NASB).

When things are wonderful, we praise Him. When things are horrible, we praise Him. Whether we are happy or sad or terrified or bored, we are determined to offer to God our sacrifice of praise. Everything in us should give praise to the Lord. 

Receiving Rest in the Garden

When I flew back in yesterday morning, the first place I went was to the Israel Prayer Garden.  Even with the extreme heat, the Garden is just breathtaking.  As you watch this video focusing on the tribe of Simeon, I declare you will receive a fresh portion of rest.

Blessings,
Chuck D. Pierce

Praising God Seven Times a Day for Seven Days, to Remove all Offenses!

Dear Praising Ones:

I hope you are doing well.  Thank you for praying for me as I have traveled and ministered all over the world.  Dutch and I are proceeding forward with the Time to Plow tour.  We just finished the Northwest, including Alaska, and are headed to regional gatherings in Minnesota and Kansas this week.  As I travel, one thing that I frequently hear is how someone has been offended because of something.  There is a way for us in the Body of Christ to get past offense.  THIS IS THROUGH PRAISE!  The following focus is to help us develop a disciplined life of praise so the Lord enthrones Himself in our midst.  I am sending this out for you to use through the Blowing of the Trumpets at the New Year on September 29.

Praising seven times a day sounds glorious. However, I do think this will be more difficult than we think.  The attitudes of the world invade us on a daily basis.  Below are several guidelines that can help you develop this discipline so all offense in your life can be removed. Offense can be personal, corporate or even attitudes toward the political ways of the world.  Whatever can cause you to stumble, I decree all stumbling blocks be removed!

Blessings,
Chuck D. Pierce


Praising God Seven Times a Day for Seven Days, to Remove all Offenses!

I have been meditating for two weeks on Psalm 119:163-165. “I hate and detest falsehood, but I love Your law. Seven times a day and all day long do I praise You because of Your righteous decrees. Great peace have they who love Your law.  Nothing shall offend them or make them stumble.” Offense is usually the emotional issue of our life that stops us from advancing.  So many people live with offense. In King David’s life, he not only stayed one step ahead of death, but found the key to moving forward in his life by staying beyond offense.

Once Yeshua began to advance the Kingdom through His ministry on earth, we find the same issue in His life.  John the Baptist kept sending his disciples, along with various  Pharisees, to question His ministry. They wanted an explanation of both His works and actions.  In Matthew 11:1-6, He said,  “Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities. And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’  Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: the blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.’”  In other words, He was saying to John, “Everything you prophesied, I am doing. But let Me add one more word from Heaven — don’t get offended and stumble and quit advancing in Father’s plan for your life and the Kingdom.”

The word offended in the Greek is skandalizo, which means to put a snare or stumbling block in the way.  The noun to which it is related refers to the bait-stick of a trap. In the New Testament, skandalizo is always used metaphorically as that which hinders right conduct or thought, hence, “to cause to stumble.”  In Merriam-Webster Dictionary we find this definition of offend, “To transgress the moral or divine law; to sin, violate a law or rule or do wrong; to cause difficulty, discomfort, or injury;  to cause dislike, anger, or vexation; violate, transgress a contract; to cause pain or to hurt; or  to cause (a person or group) to feel hurt, angry, or upset by something said or done.” The Lord knew that stumbling blocks would come into each of our lives. However, He encouraged us to always keep going.

The Key to Advancement is Through Praise!  Praise and Worship Produce Glory!
All throughout God’s Word, we see that God is enthroned in praise. We glorify Him through our worship. That is why praise and worship are essential to experiencing God’s glory. Praise is that element of celebration that can transport us into the throne room of God. Once we are in the throne room at His feet, we need to worship and adore Him. As we worship Him in that intimate place, He begins to reveal His glory to us. God is looking for true worshipers who will worship “in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). And as He finds those worshipers, they are able to experience the reality of heaven, which is God’s glory.

Time to Go Forth in Praise!
Worship causes us to move thankfully with our body toward our creator. Praise (or yadah in Hebrew) is to worship God with extended hands. With hands lifted up, we declare the merit of God, and we thank Him for everything He has put in our hands. We find this concept first mentioned in the Bible when Leah conceived her fourth son and named him Judah, meaning praise. When Jacob acknowledged Judah, he extended his highest blessing upon him and declared that even his brothers would praise him. He also declared that Judah (praise) would triumph over all of his enemies with royal authority (the scepter) and legal authority (the lawgiver). The word “Judah” also means to hold out your hand and throw or shoot a stone or an arrow at your enemy. Therefore, we find that praise will be a key weapon of the Spirit of God in our lives in days ahead.

Praise is a Response to God’s Revelation of Himself!
Every child of God should express praise. Human praise of a holy God is a major theme throughout God’s Word. Praise is expressing to God our appreciation and understanding of His worth. Praise says “thank you” for each aspect of God’s nature. Praise expands our awareness of God’s character. “Praise” comes from a Latin word meaning “value” or “prize.” When we praise God, we proclaim His merit or worth and His value to us here on earth. We find other words related to praise in the Bible, including “glory,” “blessing,” “thanksgiving” and “hallelujah.” These should all be ways we express our love for God.  The order of the Lord’s Prayer in Luke 11:2 is important, “Father . . . hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.” First, Jesus praised God, and then He made His request. Praising God puts us in the right frame of mind to begin to declare our needs to a holy Father. With our hands outstretched we can worship God in such a way that our daily provision can be released. Through worship, we can be assured that our supply will always come to us in a timely manner. Praise and thanksgiving are the opposite of worry. One of our greatest worries is over our needs being met. This is a time to be thankful for all that God is doing in our lives. Be like the one leper who went back and thanked Jesus for his healing. This thankfulness produced not just healing, but wholeness. Be whole!

There is also a price to pay to enter into praise and worship. There is a cost to this process, and we are faced with a fundamental issue: Will we choose to just enjoy the efforts of others, or will we enter into the sacrifice of praise in a personal way? Furthermore, will we choose to offer this sacrifice in the good times as well as the trials?  We must be willing to embrace these costs to experience the real fruit of our praise.

There is, perhaps, no stronger weapon of warfare than praise and worship to the Lord. Satan hates our worship to God for many reasons. For one, he is jealous of our worship. He longs to obtain it for himself through whatever means he can. For another, he knows that the weapon of worship is strong and effective. Consider the words of Psalm 149:5-9: “Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud on their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand, to execute vengeance on the nations, and punishments on the peoples; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute on them the written judgment—this honor have all His saints. Praise the LORD!”

Another important reason is explained by Cindy Jacobs: “When we praise God, He inhabits or enters our praises, and His power overwhelms the power of the enemy. He is a mighty God, and Satan cannot match His strength. Light will dispel the darkness through God’s entering into our praise.” (Possessing the Gates of the Enemy, p. 178) Through praise, the Lord Himself begins to do warfare on our behalf, to silence our enemy.

How to Praise for Seven Days
  • DAY 1 (AM):  Read Psalm 130; Rev. 2:10.  Praise God for removing your past and extending abundant grace and forgiveness to you.  Stand in His Presence and receive an outpouring of His grace.  Let Hope arise new and fresh.  Let assurance of redemption rest upon you, and command all fear to leave you.
  • DAY 1 (PM):  Read Psalms 131 – 134.  Praise God and let perfect peace manifest in you.  Stop striving and leaning on your own understanding concerning your circumstances and allow trust to arise.  Embrace the faithful love of God.  As a weaned child rests against his mother’s breast, declare that your soul is a weaned child within you.  A weaned child has come to a new place of maturity.  There is no peace until all our enemies are under our feet.  Ascend above your enemies and reach the goal of the throne room.  Sing, praise, and worship in the presence of the LORD.  Receive a new anointing, like the oil poured on Aaron’s head and flowing down the hem of his robe.
  • DAY 2:  Read Joshua 5 & 6.  Praise God!  Ask the Lord for the strategy of worship that will dethrone what has seemed invincible and prevented you from moving forward in your promise.
  • DAY 3 (AM):  Read Psalm 34.  Praise God for the angels that are encamping around you.
  • DAY 3 (PM):  Read Psalm 85.  Praise God for restoring favor to your land.
  • DAY 4:  Read Philippians 4.  Thank God for establishing your mind on Him and making you think His thoughts.  Realign your thoughts.  Declare that you will capture each thought you have that is contrary to God’s judgment.
  • DAY 5:  Read Acts 16:16-34.  Praise God and watch your prison doors let go.  Watch salvation come to those around you who are imprisoned.
  • DAY 6:  Read Psalm 9.  Be willing to declare to others how the Lord has touched and manifested Himself to you.  Break out of insecurity and into boldness.
  • DAY 7 (AM):  Read Isaiah 12.  Numbers 21:10-18.  Praise breaks open your wells of salvation.  Praise is the cure for dryness.  Receive a renewed spirit!
  • DAY 7 (PM):  Read Jeremiah 42:7.  “And it came to pass after ten days that the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah.”  Declare that new revelation, strategy and plans for your future are being released from the throne room.  Praise God in advance for these manifestations.

May the God of all Peace inhabit you and make you whole. May all offenses you have accumulated through the years be removed, and may you guard yourself against any offenses in the future.  Join us each Wednesday at noon through September 25 for a corporate hour of praise.

The Generations Are Aligning! Press Through Your Narrow Place!

Key Prophecy: Your Time to Come Out in the Sun!

Monday, August 12, 2019

Dear Pressing Ones:

This is a time when we must aggressively press through the narrow place so we break through and go the distance!  Yesterday’s service was an amazing example of the generations aligning. Not only did we have an on-fire group of youth returning from camp, but my daughter (Rebekah Faubion) and I were able to minister together on how to press out to press in to our promises.  If you could not join us, be sure to watch the replay and declare you are coming out of your confined place and into the Light!


Your Time to Come Out In the Sun!

Here is a key prophecy that will help encourage you to keep advancing through this month of Av. “I see you in your enclosed place. I see you as you sit and attempt to heal that which needs to be healed. But this is not a time of licking and mending your wounds over and over; this is a time for you to come out into the sun.  The sun will heal your wounds and burn out what is within you. Don’t back up and hide again!  Come out and watch Me begin to bring you into wholeness.

“You have forgotten where you have come from. Some of you have settled yourself into where you are now but forgotten that you are from a royal priesthood. Do not confine yourself to where you are nor the bloodline that you’re in, for there is a higher stream of Blood that I have given to you. The same Blood that ran down Calvary’s Cross is your blood. Do not submit to the bad things in your bloodline, for there is a higher blood. Forget not where you come from, for you are My sheep and I still am the Good Shepherd! Watch Me shepherd you as we go into this new era; I will reveal myself as the Good Shepherd.

“Keep your eyes on Me because I am the One that’s leading you. You are afraid to come out into the sun because in the light you are exposed. You fear what others may see or say when you step into the light.  However, they do not see what I see.  I am not about what is exposed in the sun, but the shining that’s coming from inside of you!  What I have placed inside of you is going to radiate beyond what is seen and what is exposed, and is what will lead you into the new.

“Like the three Hebrews in Babylon’s raging fire, this is a time when you will feel the intensity of the heat.  However, this will not consume you but prepare you to hold on to My promises. The fire I have set within you will overcome the fire in the earth realm. My consuming fire is coming to those things the enemy set you in to overtake you. My spotlight is on you. You are to radiate and cause the light I put on you to cause the darkness around you to separate and dispel. My light is on you, and you cause the darkness around you to separate and dispel.” (Acijam Otxoa, Chuck D. Pierce, Keevy Phillips, Kendrick Lewis, Robyn Vincent)

Blessings,
Chuck D. Pierce

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