I woke up this morning singing a worship song. I don’t know where I heard it, and I don’t remember having a dream where someone sang it, but nevertheless, I was singing it as I got up, fixed some coffee, and hung out with Jesus.
“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name.”
As I went about my morning routine (which is basically fixing another cup of coffee while I read devotionals on YouVersion), I just kept singing it. The song wasn’t as important as what I heard next. As The B99 made her way back to the room to talk to Jesus, I heard her begin singing the same song.
I don’t remember singing it loudly, or playing it on our Alexa Echo, or even telling her about how I woke up singing it. The only thing I know is that she was around me, she heard me singing it, and then she started singing it, too.
Praise is contagious, and when you and I praise, it affects those around us.
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. (Acts 16:25-26 NIV, emphasis mine)
When Paul and Silas praised, not only were they set free, but so was everyone else! Praise is a weapon that we can’t keep to ourselves because praise is contagious.
We all know what it means to pay it forward, but I want to challenge you to praise it forward today. Hum that praise song, or whistle it, or sing it. Exalt God in your conversations with others (praise is more than just singing) and watch how things begin to shift.
Your praise may very well hold the key that unlocks someone else’s chains. So get your praise on, and then praise it forward!
