Praise works like a magnifying glass. It causes what we’re focusing on to get bigger, to be ‘magnified.’ David said, ‘Magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears’ (Psalm 34:3-4 NKJV). It can be tempting to wait until we’ve no problems, fewer problems, or our problems are solved before we praise God. In fact, when we’re going through tough times and problems just seem to be mounting up, praise is often the last thing on our minds. But praise is key when it comes to problem-solving because it gets our focus off of our problems and onto God, the ultimate problem solver. God promises ‘the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.’ It works like this. When we begin to praise Him through the pain, hurt, confusion and doubt, we experience a new sense of hope and joy. We’re reminded that God is bigger than the situation we face; that He’s not only capable of managing our problems but willing, wanting, and waiting to. And there’s always something to praise God for. Even if we feel our lives are too full of problems and trials to be thankful, we can still praise God for who He is. While our lives are always changing, God is unchanging. His power, love, grace, goodness, guidance...we have these no matter what we’re facing and how we’re feeling. So start adding more praise to your day, and see how things start to change.

What Now?
Don’t just take coffee and tea breaks, take ‘praise breaks.’ Add a ‘praise break’ into your day today.