Worshipping God in the darkest hours
Acts 16 : 16 - 40
Does the thought of lifting God's name in your troubles seem rather paradoxical or come across as an oxymoron. More often than not, we would glorify God when we experience something we feel that is good to us and would seek God and cry for His help and wisdom when we land ourselves in trouble.
In Philippians 4:4, it reads "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"
The verse above says rejoice in the Lord always. It did not say rejoice in the Lord when you are feeling good or when you are in a joyous mood. Rejoice, as seen from the verse above is not held within fixed parameters or confined within certain boundaries. Rather, the key word is 'always'. In spite of your circumstances, we should always remember to rejoice in the Lord.
When adverse circumstances await you, your reaction will determine your depth of relationship with God. As seen in 2 Corinthians 4:8 "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair". This verse simply tells us that regardless of your circumstances, if one has God in his heart, one will not be embracing a defeatist attitude or hanging in melancholy.
The onslaught of the enemy is continuous. However, if one learns how to praise and worship God effectively and always, the spirit of God will then give rise to a standard to overcome the taunting by the enemy. It is about the confidence you have in God as well. God can do things beyond your wildest imagination.
The reason why Christians should worship God in their darkest hours is simply because God is ultimately still God. We have heard of anecdotes or testimonies of other Christians who have experienced God's wisdom and guidance in many circumstances. In these circumstances, God had and will never forsake his children.
Colossians 3:1 - 2 reads "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."
God allows darkest moments in our lives to allow us to enter into a spiritual realm with him so as to draw closer to our eternal God such that we will and can now face our darkest moments together with God and not alone. God drew us to Him by allowing us to encounter a problem in the very first beginning. Do you think God will leave you alone after the first problem? Often times, people remember the existence of God when they face problems. People will then start to ask God why he allowed these misfortunes to happen to them. However, if we continue to jump on this bandwagon of lamentation and rebuke, we will then not be able to fully rise above our problems.
How do we then get our sustenance to worship God amidst our darkest moments? The answer is the Bible.
Feed on God's word as it lays a strong foundation for one to be grounded in God's word such that it allows us to know how to deal with circumstances. His word not only gives us strength but also is a source of encouragement to allow us to overcome our difficulties. If you are wondering where should I start from? Why not consider the book of Psalms.
When we worship God in our darkest moments, we see three alterations in our lives.
1. A Mental and Spiritual change.
2. A change in your Situation.
3. A change in Others.
However, all the above can only take place if we decide to make the first move to change our perception and learn to put God first in everything we do. It is only when we know that our heart is a heart that is truly seeking God, will we then be able to experience the unseen spiritual power of our eternal God.
