Day 22: Psalms of Praise & Thanksgiving

“Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth! Sing out the honor of His name; make His praise glorious.” (Psalm 66:1-2 NKJV)

Praise is never about us.

It’s not about showing the world how God has blessed us, but declaring that He is glorious.

Recently my husband was diagnosed with cancer. If the only time I praised God right now was when I felt blessed on the surface of things, there’d be a lot of silence over here. But there’s so much more to my family’s current story than us.

This is about God, using all things for His good.

It’s about God being glorious, even in the gut-wrenching feelings.

Even when our hearts are in turmoil, He is worthy to be praised!

Later on in this Psalm, the Psalmist says, “Come and hear, all you who fear God, and I will declare what He has done for my soul” (Psalm 66:16 NKJV).

When God asks us to praise Him in a storm, it will not do us any good to examine our feelings or our outside, superficial circumstances. Instead we can look up and outside of ourselves at God. He is faithful, true and glorious, and that is enough reason to praise Him. And we can look deep inside our own hearts and praise Him for the work He has done in our souls.

He’s not wasting the pain and the heartbreak – He is using it to work in our very souls. And He is good, no matter the circumstantial outcome.

Stefani

P.S.
Hey dear TruthBytes reader. Stefani here. When I started TruthBytes, it was from a passion to help Moms connect with Jesus every morning, before signing into Facebook or Instagram. And I've been overjoyed with the response to our little devotional app. I am so thankful there are so many moms out here in cyberland who are serious about their relationship with Jesus and who are pursuing Him wholeheartedly. So, all of that makes this really hard to say: the time has come to shut TruthBytes down for good. It makes me so sad, but God is calling our family down a different path and it has become impossible to keep everything going. The app will be available and updated through December 1.
This doesn't mean we need to lose connection though! You can go to the "About Us" tab on the homescreen and subscribe to and follow every team member behind the app. And I highly encourage you to! The ladies that have written for this app are filled with the wisdom and power only Jesus can give and I know following their personal blogs will be inspiring to you!
I'll be sharing some of our favorite devotional and Bible study resources over the next couple weeks as well. 
Blessings and prayers for each of you! You are so loved!

Stefani