“I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Psalm 34:1 (KJV)
There’s something about praise that feels like sunlight. Not the kind that blinds you, more like the kind that warms you and reminds you you’re still alive.
Some mornings I wake up with gratitude already sitting near the edge of my bed. I can’t always explain it, but I can feel it. It is like God is giving me a gentle nudge before the day even starts: Start with Me. Not with your list. Not with your worries. Not with the headlines. Start with Me.
So I do. I whisper it while the house is still quiet. “Thank You, Lord for breath." For mercy. For another chance to try again. For strength that carried me yesterday. For peace that didn’t come from my circumstances, but from His presence.
What I love about praise is that it doesn’t require a perfect day to be real. Praise is already waiting for you. It’s available before you feel strong, before you feel ready, before you have the answer. Praise is the language of a heart that remembers.
Sometimes I’ll be making my tea, and a song will rise up in my mind. An old hymn, a chorus I grew up on, a line that’s been stitched into my spirit. Right there in that ordinary moment, I feel my mind settle. My breathing slows down. My thoughts get quieter. It’s not because life suddenly got easy. It’s because praise has a way of putting me back where I belong: close to God.
Praise does that. It recenters you. It’s like turning your face toward the light. The shadows don’t disappear, but they lose their power to define the room. The more I practice praise, the more I realize it’s not just worship, it’s training. It’s how God builds courage in me without drama, without forcing, without striving. Praise strengthens your inner self. It helps you stand with your shoulders back even when your knees feel weak.
That’s why the story of Paul and Silas stays with me. They were doing the will of God and still found themselves beaten and locked away. Their situation was unfair. Painful. Confining. They were in a place that could make you question everything. Their feet were fastened in stocks, no comfort, no control, no quick exit.
Yet, the Bible says, “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them” (Acts 16:25). It was at midnight. Not at sunrise. Not after the rescue plan was announced. Not once the doors opened. But Midnight, the time when you can’t see what’s next.
But their praise didn’t wait for daylight. It rose in the dark. It wasn’t a quiet praise, it wasn't a hidden praise either. Scripture says the prisoners heard them. Their worship had a sound. Their courage had a voice. Then God responded: “And suddenly there was a great earthquake… and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.” (Acts 16:26). The prison shook. Doors opened. Chains fell.
The part that ministers to me most is the order: praise came first. Praise didn’t just follow freedom, praise helped make room for it.
I’ve learned that’s how God works in our lives, too. Sometimes the miracle is on its way, but God builds you up before it arrives. He strengthens you before the shaking. He steadies your heart before the door opens.
So now, when I feel fear trying to creep in, when a hard conversation is coming, when uncertainty starts circling my mind, when I’m tempted to shrink, I go back to what I know.
I praise. Not as a performance. Not as denial. But as a declaration: “God, You are faithful.” “God, You are with me.” “God, You are bigger than this.” “God, You have never failed.”Then something in me stands up in me. Courage doesn’t always come like a shout. Sometimes it comes like a song.
Maybe that’s the invitation for today: to let praise be your positive beginning and your steady strength. Because when praise is continually in your mouth, courage becomes continually in your spirit.
Reflection:
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What would change in your day if praise was your first language, not your last resort?
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Where do you need “midnight praise”, the kind that rises before anything shifts?
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What has God already done that your praise can remember today?