Praising God Is a Choice

I will sing of your love and justice; to you, LORD, I will sing praise. . . . Every morning
I will put to silence
all the wicked in the land.
Psalm 101:1, 8

The place where Satan most torments believers is in our minds. He messes with our thinking, sending thoughts of anxiety, fear, self-doubt, and God-doubt. However, God has given us the incredible power of choice. In other words, we have a choice about what thoughts our mind will entertain.

The psalmist writes, “I will sing of your love and justice” (Ps. 101:1). Notice the word “will.” In fact, why don’t you circle it in the verses? The word “will” implies a choice. When life is tough, we don’t always feel like shouting an exuberant “Hallelujah! God is good!” We don’t always feel like praising God or singing.

“The place where Satan most torments believers is in our minds.”

That is when our power of choice has to govern our feelings. I may not feel like being exuberant, but I can choose to pray, “God, I praise You that You are good though my circumstances don’t feel good.” When life feels dark, we can choose to put on worship music in our homes and allow the music to prompt our praise. In other words, we do not have to give in to the thoughts Satan may be throwing at us. We can intentionally choose to direct our thoughts to the lovingkindness and graciousness of God. This is the way we, in the words of the psalmist, “put to silence all the wicked” (Ps. 101:8). We choose to take every thought captive (2 Cor. 10:5). When we direct our thoughts to God, choosing to praise Him for His goodness though life may feel bad, we find peace in His presence.