Power of Praise

Acts 16:25-26 MSG

Along about midnight, Paul and Silas were at prayer and singing a robust hymn to God. The other prisoners couldn't believe their ears. Then, without warning, a huge earthquake! The jailhouse tottered, every door flew open, all the prisoners were loose.
Is there a better way to describe the power of praise? Man is so limited and so myopic that he cannot fully comprehend the power of praise by his own power; you need the help of the Holy Spiritual to be able to praise God effectively.
Paul and Silas were in prison. They had just healed a girl by the power of the Holy Spiritual, and instead of being celebrated, they were insulted; instead of being decorated, they were lashed. Instead of being honoured, they were locked up. Any reason to praise God here? Paul and Silas saw plenty. God never sees the way man sees and He never comes to the same conclusion man does with his experiences. That is why man can cry out for help in front of the Red Sea, while God is saying: move forward through that same sea. Man will see the giants and the rugged inhabitants of Canaan, while all through the years, all God was saying was: it is a land flowing with milk and honey. If only we could see things the way God does, we would praise Him with more joy, zeal and understanding than we do now. We are cajoled and begged to praise God in corporate worship, we are encouraged to count our blessings and see what God has done. Until a life can see God at work in ALL the experiences of life, that life cannot fully comprehend the power, purpose and the end-result of praise. For Paul and company, it began with lashes, it ended with salvation for the entire household of their jailor and a witness in the hearts of all prisoners there that there is indeed a God who works wonders in the lives of those who praise him. How else would the jailor have heard of God if God did not make a way through the Red sea of prison for Paul.
The next time you are tempted to complain about your experiences and challenges, turn to praise and see God at work in your life. He is the master architect who can make masterpieces out of the most broken of vessels.