A Tip to Make Things Easier for You

Some very odd things have happened.

Weeks ago, “Rebecca,” my Zambian girlfriend had a dream. She saw the Lion of Judah. Spirits attacked her, and she cried to him for help. He didn’t help until she started praising him. She praised him because she recalled the scripture which says God inhabits the praises of his people. As she praised him, he came to her and removed the hostile spirits.

He had flags attached to him. Two were American, and one was Haitian. Before the dream, she hadn’t been aware of the design of the Haitian flag. She described the flag she saw, and somehow it seemed to me that it might be Haitian, so we looked it up. My impression was confirmed. We thought the American flags represented us, and the Haitian flag represented one of my Haitian friends.

A few days back, I got some revelation involving praise. Isaiah describes Satan as a worship leader in heaven. The failed spirit Lucifer, who was a cherub, used to hover above God’s throne, praising and making music. I started thinking about cherubs.

The Ark of the Covenant was a wooden box. Wood is human flesh, because trees symbolize men. Inside the box, the Hebrews put the commandment tablets, manna, and Aaron’s rod. The presence of God rested in the box. On top of the box, there were two figures representing cherubs. Only two.

When Jesus was resurrected, two angels were found at his tomb. Only two. The ark, which represented Jesus, was literally covered by two cherubs. The body of Jesus was also accompanied by two angels. It was the true ark, and they were the cherubs portrayed above the wooden ark.

I use the word “angel” loosely. An angel is a messenger. A cherub is a certain type of spirit that serves God.

The purpose of the resurrection was to raise up a race of beings like Jesus. The Bible makes this clear. Jesus was a man, and he was part of the tribe of Judah, even though priests come from the tribe of Levi. “Judah” literally means “praise.” When I thought about this, somehow I realized our purpose was to replace Lucifer and do his job. No wonder he hates us so much. It’s as if someone dragged Beyonce off a stage and threw her into a cesspool while inviting obscure Christians to come up and sing hymns. Her diva rage would be immeasurable.

No wonder pride is the main weapon Satan uses to drag us down with him. Like him, we like to praise ourselves. Seems to be an occupational hazard when your purpose is to praise God.

Jesus also traveled with two cherubs in the Old Testament. He appeared to Abraham among a group of three men. When God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, he sent two great angels. He, himself, had withdrawn from those cities. It was a picture of the tribulation.

God showed Rebecca and me the power of praise.

The Hebrews leveled Jericho with it. They didn’t use tools. They marched around the city, which was a way of praising God. They marched on seven successive days, and on the last day, they circled the city seven times. Seven is the number of the Holy Spirit and of completion. Their marches were praise. So was the final shout that brought the walls down.

When Paul and Silas were chained in a jail, they praised God with song. The earth shook and broke them free. God himself showed up in their praise to save them.

When Moses, Aaron, and Hur held up Aaron’s rod, the Hebrews defeated their enemies. When Moses lowered it, the battle turned against the Hebrews. Lifting the rod was praise.

We have started setting time aside for praise. This morning, we praised God and prayed in tongues for 20 minutes before we prayed together with our understanding. If you can sense the supernatural, you will feel God’s power and faith rise up around you while you praise him. Even if you can’t feel it, it will happen, unless something is wrong with you.

Interesting fact: the Jews are named for praise. “Jew” comes from “Judah,” and “Judah” means “praise.” Today Rebecca cited Isaiah 43:21, which says, “This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.” I wonder how many Jews realize this is why their race was created. It wasn’t to follow rules. The tribe named Dan (“judge”) was lost, but God preserved Judah.

Look at Psalm 40, which is a Jewish scripture:

And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.

Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.

Lucifer destroyed himself by intercepting praise and glory. He was close to God while others praised God, and Lucifer was beautiful and talented, so eventually he started “embezzling” praise for himself. He decided he could outdo God as supreme being. God saw this in his heart, and Lucifer fell from heaven like lightning, taking one third of the angels with him. This left one third for Gabriel and one third for Michael. Presumably, we will replace the lost third, under Yeshua. We should be doing it already, praising God every day.

If you give God glory, he does the hard work for you. God doesn’t want you to glorify him for things you did; that would be theft. It would make God like Satan. If he wants us to give him credit for everything, it has to be because he intends to accomplish everything for us. Praise must be a conduit of power.

Jesus is the Lion of Judah, so he is literally the Lion of Praise. This is why he noticed and helped Rebecca in the dream. When she began to praise him, she began to function correctly, so he supported her.

The Bible doesn’t call Jesus the Lion of Obedience, the Lion of Dietary Laws, or the Lion of Excessive Studying.

Satan is like a lion, too. The Lion of Feces. Jesus and Satan are both looking around, trying to find out whom they may take with them. You will end up caught up in the tail of the one you praise. If you praise anything but Jesus–hard work, talent, the government, riches, false gods–you praise Satan, and he is allowed to devour you. You are stealing God’s glory and putting it where it shouldn’t be, so you are committing the error of Satan.

When God shows me things like this, I’m amazed at how wrong the church has been for the last 2000 years. They tell us to praise God, but I’ve never seen anyone tell us we were supposed to replace Satan in praise. I’ve never seen anyone say praise makes God’s power flow in our lives. It’s not just a way of honoring him. It’s a way of getting him to do the kinds of things he did in the Bible.

On the other hand, praising yourself by believing in hard work and natural ability cuts off his help and makes you weak and vulnerable. So do praising other people and praising other spirits.

This morning before we started talking, Rebecca sent me a meme saying, “All the Glory to Jesus Christ.” She sent it while I was thinking about the power of praise. I didn’t prompt her. She was the first one to send anything.

When we started praying together, I was listening to Julie True. She started singing things like, “With everything within me, I praise you,” “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and praise,” and, “You are worthy of our praise.” She kept doing that while we prayed. She was singing scripture.

It was spooky. It’s very obvious God was telling us what to do. He was very bold about it.

The Bible says to test the spirits, so I suggest you try what I’m doing. Spend time praising God. Just sit in a chair and tell him, “I praise you,” if that’s all you can think of. Thank him, too. “”In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”

Try it for a half-hour or more. See what happens. Also, remember to thank God for things. Never take credit. When you do things, remember to tell him that without his help, you can’t do whatever it is you’re trying to do, even if you’re just making toast or tying your shoes. Tell him only he can make it happen. It’s true.