Little Lion Men

Okay, having finished on the subject of exposing lies (for now) I'd like to give a little consideration to one of our main weapons of spiritual warfare. The Lord Jesus has many titles that reflect his nature and one of my favourites is "The Lion of the tribe of Judah". Now the meaning of the name "Judah" is praise. Praise is one of our most awesome weapons.

Isaiah 61~ He has sent me...to bestow on them...a Garment of Praise instead of a spirit of despair


Seems to me that if I am in a place of despair the last thing I want to do is praise. The very notion of praising seems false, seems to lack integrity. And surely God wants me to be honest, and surely he sees how I feel and I can't pretend with him.

You see the trap we come into when we are in despair, we can descend into a tailspin of prayerlessness . Despair is a prison. The walls of the prison are built with bricks that are made of our belief that our feelings and circumstances are the true indicator of what is going on. But what has really changed? Is God no longer on the throne because one of our family has got sick? Have the laws of physics, held together and underpinned by his very word, ceased to operate because your partner has left you? Has the God who gives you every breath and marks the hairs on your head ceased to care for his children because you have been underpaid? The answer is a resounding NO!!

He is still on the throne, his purpose for you has not changed, his love for you has remained constant, his faithfulness to you has never wavered, not for one second. Did He bring us out here into the desert to die or is his intention that we get to the promised land?  Did he give his only son for you, only to turn his back on you? No, we of all people can be hopeful in the dark times. We have tasted and seen that God is good. Take heart, stir your hope and stretch out your hand.

Remember Paul and Silas in prison (in Acts 16). Now they would have had good reason to despair, in natural terms. One could say they could feel quite justified in having a bit of a sulk. "We're out in the world preaching your message God and where does that get us...we end up in prison...is that how much you care?" But what are they doing in the middle of the night? They are praying and singing hymns to God. They are not perturbed by their circumstances because they know who's really in control. Your body may be trapped but if you are free in your soul, free in your mind, you are never a prisoner!
This has two amazing effects. Firstly the other prisoners are listening to them. What a contrast between them! All in the same boat together but yet Paul and Silas are full of joy. What a testimony.
Secondly Their physical prison is reduced to rubble by an earthquake. What a fantastic story. What a metaphor.

The devil wants you to be bedazzled by what you see and cause you to give up, to not trouble him. This is why scripture, time and time again, says "what do you see?". I love the line the 24/7 prayer movement used when they first started, developed from Ezekiel "You see bones....I see an army!" When we praise, our despair lifts, we catch a greater vision and we receive hope.

That is why we are to be little lion men, little lions of Judah. To carry praise into every desert we enter and every oasis too. What are we looking at? We have to learn, like David, to take courage in the lord and give our souls a good talking to. When we praise we are doing what human beings were created to do. There is no greater purpose. We sing a song in my fellowship that never fails to remind me that I need never lose hope

We lift up our eyes, lift up our eyes You're the giver of life.~Matt Redman,You alone can rescue.

Lets lift up our eyes and give him praise whatever our circumstances, praise him for the good and praise him through the bad. Try it, you might just rekindle your hope and that'll really hack Satan off!

(Here's a link if you want to have a little listen) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YONQ7W6Qpi8&feature=related