Praise Him for It
Psalms 67
5 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
6 Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
Have you ever prayed for a job that you did not get? Did you ever pray for a house that you did not get to live in or for a car you did not get to drive? I believe it’s easy to say that we have all missed it a time or two concerning prayer. We have all prayed for things that we wanted, yet we did not attain them. To this I say, thank God, and here’s why.
As we pray for specific things, sometimes during our quest for them, we get too attached. Believe me, I’m speaking from experience and not intuition. We want that thing so badly that we will search the bible for “a word” that lines up with acquiring it and then pursue it with everything we’ve got. Now please don’t misunderstand where I’m coming from here. Putting your faith to work is fine, but if we seek the possession of the things before we seek the presence of God, problems can and will arise.
One of the major obstacles we face during our quest for possessions is the wait itself. When our patience begins to wear thin, our willingness to follow God’s plan begins to falter. We look for ways around the pathway that God has set for us to travel. We become willing to take alleyways and shortcuts to get to the thing that we want simply because we are solely focused on the acquisition of the product.
I need to let you in on this. The reason that you can’t get too consumed with what you’ve been shown is because it was just a “demonstrator,” a “model,” a “sample,” an “appetizer.” When God speaks to you to go look for cars, homes, or jobs, don’t get too caught up in the first one you see. Why? Because God may be showing you a sample of what He is going to bring to you. Let’s look at our text for confirmation.
Psalms 67
5 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
6 Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
Our text tells us that the people of God should praise God, and then, or better yet afterwards, the earth shall yield her increase. This verse tells us that our praise brings forth increase! You see, when were still all “puffy” and upset with God because we did not get the three bedroom, one and a half bath house, He wouldn’t reveal to us the four bedroom, two bathroom house. Our increase could not be yielded because we were still stuck on the sampler that He was showing us. It seems unthinkable that Christians would put possessions ahead of God, but it does happen. In doing so, we become like two-year-olds in a toy store, bawling and throwing fits over things that were never ours.
Now if God tells you specifically that this is your house, car, job, or spouse, then I would tell you to “praise Him for it” and not just pray for it. Praise God for the provision to get it. Praise God for the strategy and favor required to get it. And even if you don’t get it, praise God for the one that you’re going to get. Praise Him for “super sizing” your order. Praise Him for the job that’s better than the one you didn’t get. Praise Him for the car that better than the one you didn’t get. Praise Him for the house that bigger than the one you didn’t get. Praise Him for the spouse that is more Godly than the one you did not get. Praise Him for the business deal that will make more money than the one that you did not get—-because in the midst of your praise is your increase, and your increase is surely en route because now you know to Praise Him For It!!!!