Add Praise and Thanksgiving to your prayers!    By James Lantz

       There is a proper protocol for coming into the heavenly Father’s presence that is laid out for us in our owner’s manual. The number one thing is to come in righteousness and that is only accomplished through our faith in Jesus Christ who took our sins and gave us His righteousness. This also means that we are walking in love and obedience with our Lord and Master Jesus in all of the light that we have. Our prayers to the Father in Jesus name is not formality, but acknowledgement that Jesus purchased us and privileged us to receive every prayer answered that is according to His word. It pleases the heavenly Father well to give us mercy, grace, and every good thing because Jesus purchased it all for us! When we come before the Father at His mercy seat we are to come boldly expecting to receive from His goodness.  Heb. 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. The us referred to in this verse is all who have received remission from their sins and have received eternal life through Jesus Christ. We have been given every spiritual blessing when we were born from above through the new birth.  Eph. 1:3 NLT  All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. These spiritual blessings are in the unseen realm and thus God wants us to ask and believe Him for the things we need and for the things that we desire.  Mt. 7:7  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:    Mark 11:24  Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.  Matthew records Jesus words like this, “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive”. Unbelieving people often want to lay the blame off on God and say, well Jesus’ didn’t really mean whatever you desire physically or all things. What Jesus really meant was all spiritual things and not things like physical healing, a job, car, or house. Listen, everything that was made was made by Him and for Him and we are in Him.  Heb. 11:3  Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.  When we come to God we must believe that God is and

No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly!

we must believe that God will reward us with what we ask for. If we come to God for healing we must believe that God is the healer and that He will grant us healing. If we come to God asking for a job we must believe that He is El SHADDAI, the all sufficient one, and that He will get us a good job. Whatsoever you desire would include friends, a spouse, promotion, deliverance from evil, and every good thing. Believe the love that God has for us. All the promises of God are in Christ and have been given to us!

       Faith and trust are very much alike in that both indicate a confidence in and an assurance of good to come. Again and again we are exhorted to trust in the Lord and not be afraid. Often, when Jesus or an angel would appear, they would say, fear not or don’t be afraid. This is not some type of formality in greeting those who are being visited with a divine visitation but rather instruction not to be fearful and lose what God is wanting them to receive. Fear and worry are the opposite of faith and trust. The law of faith receives good from God every time and fear and worry receives evil from the devil. Remember what Job said, the thing I have greatly feared has come upon me. God did not destroy everything Job had, kill his children, and afflict him with sickness. Satan did this when he realized the wall of blessing and protection around Job was down because of his fear. Fear attracts evil like a magnet draws metal to itself. There are different degrees of fear and anxiety just like there are different degrees of faith. Jesus instructed us not to worry about the things we need because our Father in heaven is providing everything.  Mt. 6:25 NLT  That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear.  We are exhorted again in the Epistles not to worry or be careful about anything.  Phil. 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  1 Pet. 5:7 WNT  Throw the whole of your anxiety upon Him, because He Himself cares for you.  Sometimes people don’t recognize that it is the devil who brings those thoughts of doubt that persist in their thinking and therefore don’t cast them down.   2 Cor. 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

       We are commanded to maintain a Spirit filled life! This is not just a friendly suggestion, but a command so that we can have the Holy Spirit’s help to live free from the cares of this world and be an overcomer in every area of our lives. Speaking to ourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in our heart to the Lord, giving God thanks, and yielding one to another helps us maintain a life of faith. Jude speaks of praying in the Holy Ghost as a way to build ourselves up in our most holy faith. This will help us stay free from murmuring, complaining, ungodly lusts and pride and place us where God will keep us from falling. I needed to speak of maintaining a Spirit filled life because if our heart is not full of praise and thanksgiving to God we will definitely struggle in adding praise and thanksgiving to our prayers. The psalmist said, I will praise the name of God with a song and magnify him with thanksgiving. We are a privileged people who have been qualified to receive an inheritance from the Father through the Lord Jesus and thanksgiving is required!  Col. 1:11&12 NLT  We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light.

       After you have prayed and asked God for that which you desired of Him offer up praise and thanksgiving. Since we have believed that we received that which we have asked God for it is time to praise Him and give Him thanks for granting our request. We do not have to wait until we feel healed or until the money is in our account to rejoice and give thanks to God because it is ours now by faith. Paul and Silas were beaten with many stripes and thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make them secure and he placed their feet in stocks in the inner prison.  Acts 16:25  And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.  Acts 16:26  And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.  The answer came after they sang praises to God! Notice that they prayed and sang praises unto God so loud that the prisoners heard them. Jehoshaphat and the children of Judah also experienced a miraculous deliverance and blessing by adding praise and thanksgiving to their prayers.The children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir had joined their armies together into a great multitude and came against Judah to destroy them. When word came to Jehoshaphat that this great army was coming against them he was afraid and set himself to seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. God’s people responded from every city in Judah and came together to ask help of the Lord. After Jehoshaphat prayed and petitioned God to intervene and judge this great multitude the word of the Lord came through Jahaziel.  2 Ch. 20:15  And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s. The Lord God instructed them to go out against them tomorrow and set themselves and watch God defeat this army for them. When they heard that they did not even have to fight in this battle, but that God would fight for them, they bowed and fell before the Lord worshipping Him. Then the Levites stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high. The next day Jehoshaphat exhorted them to believe in the Lord their God so that the victorious word would be established and to believe God’s prophets so that they would prosper. Then he appointed singers to go out in front of the army praising the beauty of holiness and to say, Praise the Lord, for His mercy endureth forever.  2 Ch. 20:22  And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.  Notice that the power of God began to destroy the enemy after they lifted their voices in praise. This great victory saved their lives, kept them in their inheritance, and made them rich through gathering up the enemies spoils.  2 Ch. 20:25  And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.  Let us offer up to God the sacrifice of praise continually, giving thanks to His name, acknowledging all that was given to us through Christ which includes our current request. Praise the Lord!