How Our Praise is a Pathway to God’s heart

Perhaps the wounds that are felt the most arethe ones where the scalpelcuts the deepest.But sweet onethis IS where God’s presence is felt the nearest.Because the truth is,I've never felt so close to God as when he's carrying me through the valley.....and life calls for this sometimes.I've been learning this a lot these days.It's here where the whispers of God have been sustaining me.Because faith reminds us that he is carrying us through while fear attempts to steal our peace.But when we choose to keep the voice of God as the One who speaks INTO us,we find it so much easier to exhale praise in.Because we need his soothing reminders to drive out all fear.And this is when we drop our heart inside the pages of his story and his words find their perfect way of fitting into our story...because this is the relevancy of God.It's strange friends,before the diagnosis,before things began to change,the anxieties were rising...the pain of loss were strung over our days andthe hard that life brings was feeling extra heavy.But somewhere inside all of this-God's been putting his hand inside my chest and massaging my heart...giving me peace....The biggest thing we've been learning these days is the blessing of walking with God. And although we are continually comforted by his presence beside us,the truly amazing blessing is woven in how he's leading us...Joe and I have felt like we've been riding a roller coaster of emotions these days and everyone surrounding us has been in the cars beside us. Many times we don't have the explanations or answers for others nor for the ones we're asking deep within. So, this morning as we woke up with a headache from the craziness of yesterday's circumstances and all of the emotions it brought us through...I felt a leading from the Spirit to rest today. Not just a physical response of rest but an emotional and spiritual one. I felt God's Spirit urging us to rest in him today.And you know what happened?God showed up!Several people who have been surrounding us in prayer and in worshiping God have been echoing this very same message to us. Reminding us that God hears and sees us each one of us. God's leading to 'stand still' is a request for us to stand in his presence in prayer and in worship...to not be tempted to try and fix this thing but to trust and worship him in stillness. This is hard for us, isn't it?Because when things are wrong,when cells are out of order and when they're mutated, the last thing we think we should do is press pause. Because urgent times call for urgent measures, right?Well, this isn't so with God. Because it's in our stillness he powerfully works and it's when we're out of the way -he is clearly seen the most!I used to think he needed me to 'fix' things and then ask him for his covering in what I did.But in the midst of this battle we are currently in Joe and I have been finding the best work we can do is to praise God in the midst of difficulties and allow him to work. You see, when we praise him for WHO he is others recognize him in our lives and they meet him in our pain. You know perhaps all the brokenness we so often concentrate on has nothing to do with it's shattered pieces....Instead maybe, our response of praise is what he's looking for. Because sometimes God whispers for us to stand still,to remain in this place so we can see firsthand how he powerfully responds on our behalf.Because when battles are unleashed in our lives our stance is essential to the outcome.Our declaration of who God is in those hard seasons shouts out what we truly believe.I saw this in a very real way at my Mom's funeral when my Dad confidently raised his hand in worship of God...Because we tell the world that God is good regardless of what happens inside the details of our lives.It echoes the steadfastness of our hearts, no matter what!And this friend is the security our hearts need in our ever-changing lives.We need to know God is God, no matter what!-Because there is nothing else in life that can sustain this kind of place in our lives.You see when this all began,Joe and I had a decision to make.A decision to worship God for how good he's been and will forever beor we could wait for a diagnosis and treatment plan to pass through and then choose to worship him depending on the outcome.We chose to praise him in the middle of our struggle and to worship him for who he is every.single.day!And what happened has been amazing as God's army is surrounding us in this worship.You know sometimes as Christians we become convinced that we can only experience this kind of community in heaven.But I truly believe, it's here for us if we will become vulnerable and call out to others to stand with us on the front lines, vulnerable and all.We tap into a heavenly battle, Friends!The Church awakens and lives get re-born, young and old!Our praise is the pathway to the heart of God!It's in these places-hearts get healed, families experience restoration and lives find God. So, sweet Friend if you're in the midst of your own hard struggle, know that our praise is the weapon to call upon heaven to fight for us. Believe me, I get it...I understand the upside-down reasoning this feels like.Because I don't have any idea how all of this will work out.In fact we've been asked if our stance to Worship Over Worry is one that can sustain the battle ahead.And all we can say in response to that is...our choice toWorship Over Worry-is truly the only thing getting us through these days.Choosing to raise our tired and weary arms is our declaration that we trust God,even so...And until then...We're standing still in prayer and in worshipas we rest in God.This is not a position of surrender or defeat, but one of victory!