Aligning with Heaven

Guest (Male): Listen with us as Dr. Michael Youssef highlights the incredible results of aligning your heart with heaven.
Dr. Michael Youssef: Praise works! The praise-filled life works! But you have to try it. You have to practice it. You have to exercise it because praise will change you, and it's going to change you for good because praise will change your life. Praise will change your attitude. Trust me, praise will change your relationships. Praise will change your perspective, your sensitivities, and even your desires.
Guest (Male): Thank you for joining listeners across six continents for Leading The Way. This is the Bible teaching ministry of Dr. Michael Youssef. Right in the middle of all of the hurried stresses of life, prayers for pressing needs often come to our lips well before praise to God for His grace and His mercy. And that’s understandable. But in a moment, Dr. Youssef encourages you to become empowered by praise. So if you're buried in the drama and the weight of where life has you right now, this message will help you see the light and lighten your burden. So listen along as Dr. Michael Youssef begins.
Dr. Michael Youssef: In the last message, we saw how God is present everywhere. He's omnipresent. But God is specially present in a unique way, as we saw from Psalm 22, in the life of a praise-filled believer. Today I want to show you how the praise-filled life can change us and can change us for good. Why am I saying this? Listen carefully. Because praising God is the one thing that you and I will do that lines us up with the courts of heaven. One thing that we do that puts us in the same posture as the angels of heaven. Praising God is the one thing we do here on Earth that puts us in agreement with what's going on in heaven. Revelation 5:12 tells us that in heaven, they are constantly praising Jesus and saying, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, and glory and praise." You see, the angels and the believers who have gone ahead of us—all the believers who have gone ahead of us—right now with the angels are praising Jesus. And when you and I praise the name of the Lord first thing when you wake up in the morning, we are literally aligning ourselves with them. Listen to me. When you and I die and get buried in the ground, our praises are not going to be buried with us. They're going to keep on rising forever and ever and ever in heaven. Our praises to God will never die with us. They'll never die. Here's the thing that troubles me the most. It's a sad thing, and I'm sure it troubles you. There is this greatest lie that's perpetuated in our culture, in our society, particularly in the West. You see it in the movies and on television that everyone, when they die, they all go to heaven. I want to say, wait a minute. They can't spend two minutes to praise Jesus here on Earth. How in the world are they going to praise Him 24/7? Just think about the logic of that. Listen, I want to be upfront with you. I always am. Developing the praise-filled life demands change. It demands change in us. It demands it. And you and I know change is not easy. I know that. Most people don't want to change. Most people don't want to make an effort. They don't want to go to trouble. Most people just prefer their comfort zone and their routine. But here's the good news. Praise works. The praise-filled life works. But you have to try it. You have to practice it. You have to exercise it. Because praise will change you and it’s going to change you for good because praise will change your life. Praise will change your attitude. Trust me, praise will change your relationships. Praise will change your perspective, your sensitivities, and even your desires. Someone might be asking, well, Michael, how does a praise-filled life change my attitude? How can that be? Well, I'm glad you asked. But before I answer—and I'm not going to duck the question—I want you to know that I'm aware of the fact that there are some people who just have a pleasant disposition and others are cantankerous. But you know what? If you dig deep and find out why that person by nature has a pleasant disposition, you're going to find that person has a grateful heart, is a thankful person. But the question remains. How can a praise-filled life change my attitude? Because when you take time to praise the Lord on a daily basis—and most likely and most certainly it has to be first thing in the morning—you're going to find that it is nearly impossible for you to harbor anger, bitterness, resentment, or hatred. When you take time to praise the Lord on a daily basis to praise the goodness of God, the mercy of God, and the attributes of God, you will soon discover that the negative spirit toward others and the positive spirit toward the Lord God cannot coexist. One is going to give up, and I know which one is going to disappear. Your praise may start sluggish. I know, very sluggish. But you start anyway. Just move your lips. The Holy Spirit will fill them. Just keep moving your lips. Keep blessing God. I know it might start not with a joyful attitude and you're not on top of the world. I understand that. That's fine. But it may start very reluctant even. But as you persist in praise, the spirit of praise is going to lift you up. Why? Because as we saw in the last message, your praise is an invitation to the spirit, the Holy Spirit of Jesus, not only to come and indwell you uniquely, but when the spirit of Jesus comes and indwells you uniquely in the praise, he's going to come and reign supreme. At that moment, you're going to become loving, forgiving, and even praying for those who spitefully use you. I have experienced this too many times to doubt it. I've experienced it too many times, and I know many of you have too. As I open my mouth to honor the Lord for who He is, as I bless the Lord for the glorious things He has done, as I thank God for His grace and for His mercy and for His long-suffering with me, as I praise God for past provisions, as I bless God for past healings, I find myself uplifted from my current situation. But listen, you don't have to take my word for it. I'm a flawed man. I'm probably more conscious of that than anybody. I'm a flawed person. But you don't have to take my word for it. Take the word of God for it, okay? I just want you to take God's word for it. So I want you to turn to Isaiah 61. Isaiah 61. It is a prophecy about the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a magnificent prophecy because it took place. It happened. It was pronounced 700 years before the Lord Jesus Christ came into Bethlehem of Judea. As a matter of fact, Luke chapter 4, He goes to His local church. Well, they call that synagogue. And He sits down. That's what they did when they read the scripture. He sits down, and they bring the scroll. And what does the Lord do? He reads Isaiah 61. "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because He anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and to open the prison door to those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God." Look at verse three coming up. Isaiah 61, "To comfort all who mourn and provide for those who mourn in Zion, to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning." Now here comes the clincher. I want to show it to you demonstrably. "And the garment of praise instead of the spirit of despair." Now in your Bible, I want you to highlight a garment of praise. I must tell you a couple of things about the garment of praise. You must understand. First of all, the garment of praise is not something you're born with. The second thing about the garment of praise, it is something you put on. And the third thing is the garment of praise is no good folded or hanging in the closet. It's no good to you. And the fourth thing I want to tell you is the garment of praise is something you choose to put on. You choose to put on. When it comes to the garment of praise, listen to me. It is something that is given to you. It is something that is offered to you. And because of that, it now belongs to you. It's now available to you. It is now at your beck and call. But here's the clincher. No one, no one, no one can wear it for you. In other words, no one can praise God for you. They may thank God for you, but they can't do the praises that you must do. You have to choose the praise-filled life. You have to decide. Hear me right, please. This is important. True praise is the river that flows out of your heart, and that river is fed by your gratitude to God and thankfulness to God and praise to God. Here's something I hope you'll never forget. Don't ever forget what I'm going to tell you. From God's point of view, He has given us a zillion reasons why to praise Him. He's given us a zillion reasons why to praise Him. And furthermore, He does give us the desire to praise Him. And wouldn't you know it, because He gets blessed by your praises, He blesses you back. Isn't that an amazing God we have? Isn't that an amazing God we have? But you're the one who has to do the praising. You're the one who must wrap yourself up with the garment of praise, and you have to do it on a daily basis. You're the one who must keep that garment of praise 24/7. Question. Does this mean that you never be tempted to take off the garment of praise? Of course not. Temptations come to all of us. But every time the enemy of your soul offers you a garment of despair, what you do, you overwhelm him with the garment of praise. Every time he tempts you to put on the garment of discouragement under the guise of just being realistic, you put on the garment of praise and you keep on wearing it. And let me tell you something. After you get used to wearing silk, Hessian will not feel good. But there's something else I need to tell you about the garment of praise. It's not Dr. Michael Youssef. It's not a preacher, evangelist, or a theologian. No, the Lord Himself, the Lord Himself is the one who contrasts the garment of praise with the spirit of despair. The one who made us, the one who redeemed us, the one who loved us, the one who died on the cross for us. He's the one who makes that comparison. The Lord Himself does that. And in the Old Testament, when a person is experiencing utter despair, it leads them to tear up their garment, literally ripping the fabric as a sign of deep sorrow. The ripping of the fabric is a sign of the ripping of their hearts and how they are heartbroken. It is a sign of being emotionally torn by sadness. Let me give you some biblical examples of the tearing of the fabric as a symbol of the tearing of the heart. That's why Joel says, "Tear your hearts, not your garments." For example, you find in 2 Samuel chapter 13, Tamar, the daughter of King David, when her wicked, evil stepbrother raped her, she tore the ornamented robe in despair. In Job chapter 2, verse 12, when Job's friends saw what happened to him, they couldn't help it but tear their own clothes. In Ezra 9:3, when Ezra saw the unfaithfulness of God's people, he tore the tunic and a cloak. Question. What is Jesus's message when He sat in His local church and opened the scripture to Isaiah 61 and says, "This has been fulfilled in your ears," meaning this prophecy now fulfilled in me, the Messiah? I am the one of whom Isaiah 61 is speaking. And He says this to them, and first, they were kind of not very responsive, but then later He told them a story from the Old Testament that indicated that He came to the Gentiles as well as to the Jews. And that's when they took him into this precipice in Nazareth and they want to throw Him down. What do you mean the Messiah came to save Gentiles? He only came to save Jews. But what is He saying? Why did He sit there and read that chapter of Isaiah 61 in Luke chapter 4? Because He's telling everyone of us that in Him, the Christ, you can exchange your torn garment of sadness with His garment of gladness. That in Him, the Christ, you can replace your garment of despair with His garment of praise. That in Him, the Christ, you can throw away the garment of sorrow and cloak yourself with His healing and the garment of His power and forgiveness. In Him, the Christ, you can cover up your nakedness of discouragement and despair with a beautiful garment of joy. Now, beloved, it is only in the lifting up of the name of Jesus that evaporates the cloud of discouragement. I don't know of any other way. It is when you move your lips in praise and worship and adoration on a daily basis that He moves His power and His strength and His joy in you. It is when you fix your eyes on Jesus and Jesus, the praise of Jesus, where He changes your desires, He'll change your relationships, He'll change your perspective, and He will change your sensitivities. Well, if that's not enough, let me give you another reference from Isaiah 40 beginning at verse 28. Mark it down. I'm going to read it for you, but mark it down. "Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord, the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the Earth, He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and He increases the power of the weak. Even youths will grow tired and weary, and young men will stumble and fall. But those who hope in the Lord," can you say that with me? "Those who hope in the Lord, they renew strength." Hallelujah. "They will soar on wings of eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint." Well, I need to tell you a true story as I conclude. His name was George Frideric Handel. He was all alone in his room one day feeling depressed, discouraged. Actually, he was feeling thoroughly and utterly dejected. He was despondent and he was weary. His soul was sick within him. You see, a few days earlier, his orchestra was thrown out on the street after rehearsal. The next day, the concert audience jeered him and he convinced himself he is nothing but a failure. He felt there was nothing left for him but to leave London. And while he's in the middle of this dark mood, this dark mood of despair, there was a knock on the door, interrupted his despair. A friend came with a manuscript for an oratorio, and he asked Handel would he please write the music for it. Handel refused. He said, "It's over. I'm done." But then he took a second look at it and he saw the title, "Messiah". Messiah. And Handel did love to praise the name of Jesus. He loved the praise of God. So he read it, and all of a sudden, he literally recovered because the spirit of praise began to cover him like a blanket from head to toes. And he immediately went to work, three straight weeks without a break. And he came up with what we know today as Handel's "Messiah". Hallelujah! Hallelujah! And thus, my beloved friends, the garment of despair was replaced by the garment of praise. Today, you and I and millions of others around the world can be blessed with that magnificent music of Handel's "Messiah". And it was born out of a spirit of despair being replaced by the garment of praise. Beloved, would you listen to me? I'm about to finish so I don't want to lose you in the last couple of seconds, okay? There is no telling how God can use you and every single person at the sound of my voice. Yes, you, at any age, at any stage, in any condition, and at any place. He can use you. The question is, will you say, "Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord. I will take the garment of praise every day. Have it cover me, and I will live the praise-filled life."
Guest (Male): Dr. Michael Youssef with encouragement to put on praise. We thank you for taking time in your day for Leading The Way. Before your feet hit the floor, your mind is flooded. Unfinished responsibilities, unresolved personal battles. In moments like these, praising God may be the last thing you want to do. But it's exactly where you need to begin. In his foundational book, "Empowered by Praise," Dr. Youssef reveals how you can look to Jesus in the midst of life's trials. He reveals practical, biblical ways to live a life of praise each day, including four ways to invite God to set up camp in your life, five ways praise renews you, a profound exploration of 11 names of God and what they reveal about His nature, plus a bonus chapter-by-chapter reflection guide in the back of the book. Experience the deep, abiding joy of glorifying God with all you are. Request your copy of "Empowered by Praise" for your gift of any amount to Leading The Way. In "Empowered by Praise," you will read several personal stories about how praise led Dr. Youssef to experience God's presence and God's power in new ways. And you'll discover some very practical ways to focus your eyes and your heart on joyfully pursuing God and His glory. These ways will change your life. I love this book. Get your book on the way today when you call us: 866-626-4356. That's 866-626-4356. You can also go to ltw.org. Dr. Youssef is offering to send you a copy of "Empowered by Praise" when you give a gift to Leading The Way for any amount. That's ltw.org. And the music means it's time for me to say goodbye, but thank you so much for being with us today. And remember that you're invited to join Dr. Michael Youssef once again next time as he passionately proclaims uncompromising truth on Leading The Way. This program is brought to you by Leading The Way with Dr. Michael Youssef.