From the lips of children and infants
    you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
    to silence the foe and the avenger.

~Psalm 8:2 NIV 1984

Have you ever had a rough night and woken up to a calming or joyful song in your head? Zephaniah 3:17 says the Lord rejoices over you with singing. Psalm 30:5 says that joy comes in the morning. Because we have a powerful enemy, who battles us in the spiritual realm, as well as the physical, the Lord has given us powerful, spiritual weapons to overcome the enemy.

Psalm 8:2 says, “You have ordained praise…to silence the foe and the avenger.” The foe is the enemy you’re facing, the that who keeps you from moving forward. The avenger is the enemy from your past, who reminds you of everything you’ve ever done wrong. The Lord has given us praise to overcome these fierce enemies.

Praise is defined as both praise and strength, as well as a “stronghold (for thy defense),” (Praise, Blueletterbible.org). The Passion Translation says, “You have built a stronghold by the songs of children. Strength rises up with the chorus of infants. This kind of praise has power to shut Satan’s mouth. Childlike worship will silence the madness of those who oppose you,” (Psalm 8:2). Psalm 149:6-9 says, “May the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands, to inflict vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, to bind their kings with fetters, their nobles with shackles of iron, to carry out the sentence written against them – this is the glory of all his faithful people. Praise the Lord.” In simplest terms, praising God takes the chains off you and puts them around the enemy.

The Lord ordains praise to enable you to walk in victory. But you won’t always do it perfectly. There’ll be days when you’ll forget to put on your spiritual armor, and you’ll leave your spiritual weapons in your prayer closet. On those days, your feelings will ramp up and try to run the show. That’s when holding onto Truth is so important. At Lifest this past summer, Keynote Speaker Margaret Frank shared her thoughts on this during her seminar, “Grasping for Hope in the Season of Depression.” She said, “Feelings are wonderful indicators, but lousy drivers.” In my quiet time, the Lord added, “Let Truth be the driver and bring the feelings along for the ride.”

The enemy is going to constantly attack, accuse, and assault you. But the Lord has ordained praise to get your eyes, ears, and mind off the words of the enemy and put your focus solely on the Lord. Who will be louder in your ears today? Will it be the enemy or your praises of your Heavenly Father?

Even Louder ~ Steven Malcolm (feat. Natalie Grant)