The Waiting RoomSample

Day 7: Praise

The lyrics of one of my favourite songs goes like this: “We bless your name, we bless your name, Oh Mighty God. We bow before your throne. We glorify your holy name, Qhawe lama qhawe (meaning King of kings in South African isiXhosa). We magnify your Holy name, Qhawe lama qhawe.”

When in the waiting room, sometimes it is not easy to give God a praise. When we look around us and see deprivation, our human nature is blinded to the work that God may be doing in that season of our life. Due to the state of our being, we find it difficult to express praise unto The Lord. However, we need to be cognisant of the fact that the spirit deterring us from praising God in the midst of our greatest challenges is not from God.

Psalm 34 encourages us to praise God even when we go through trials and tribulations. We see examples of how to do this from many of God’s people in the Bible, such as David and Job. Despite what these two went through, they always praised God and sincerely magnified His name. Throughout scripture we see how God always made inroads for those who loved Him.

When you love The Lord and abide in Him, He will make a way for you. No matter how bleak it may seem, when you are one with God, you will trust in the fulfilment of His promises and praise Him for it, even when you are yet to see them come to fruition. As Hebrews 11:1 says, “faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen”.

There are many ways to praise God, some are as simple and practical as these two:

Worship music: When you want to praise but you can’t utter the “right” words, sing or play a worship song and immerse yourself deeply in its message of thanks and honour.

Practise gratitude: a grateful heart is a magnet for good things. Make it a daily habit to reflect on the things you are grateful for each day. Practising gratitude is a powerful tool of praise as it focuses not on lack but on what is good and pleasing, which the Lord is doing and has provided for in your life.