By Tom Shanklin

O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.” Psalms 8:1, 2, KJV.

“And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?” Matthew 21:16, KJV.

The best way to shut the devil’s mouth is to start praising God.

Satan (the enemy and the avenger) is always speaking lies. Here’s a sample set of his deceptive words:

“You’ll never be healed.”

“You’ve failed so many times, God can never use you.”

“You’ll never overcome that habit.”

“Everybody is against you.”

“You’ll never amount to anything.” Yak. Yak. Yak.

If you let him, the devil will harass you like that until the day you leave this earth. But you don’t have to allow it. You can put a stop to it NOW! Praise stills the voice of the enemy and avenger!

Praise is so powerful! When a multitude of armies came up against Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, he proclaimed a fast and sought help from the Lord. The Spirit of God came upon the prophet and told them that they would not need to fight in the battle. Then the Lord led Jehoshaphat to send a team of praise and worshippers out ahead of his army.

“And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth for ever. And when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.” 2 Chronicles 20:21, 22, KJV.

Would you like for the Lord to ambush the enemy who is trying to destroy you with negative thoughts, words and emotions? Start praising God! Praise Him with all your heart. Praise Him for His goodness. Praise Him according to all the truth of His Word.

Psalm 22.3 tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people. The Lord Himself literally lives in those praises. His presence is manifested and His power is released as you praise Him.

We all recognize that God is more powerful than the devil, but what we fail to realize is that WE have a part in releasing God’s power against the enemy.  As the scripture says, “Let the saints be joyful in glory: let them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a twoedged sword in their hand;” Psalms 149:5, 6, KJV. When you praise God with His Word, the devil is defeated.

So begin to praise God! Praise Him with the Psalms. Hit him over the head with New Testament truth. Say, “The Lord is good and His mercy endures forever! Thank you Father that Jesus died for me personally. His blood was shed for me. Jesus is my Lord! Thank you for your mercy, Father. I praise you that I am forgiven. I am cleansed. I am the righteousness of God. I am a child of God. I am healed. Thank you Lord that greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world. I praise you Father that I have a bright future, in Jesus name.”

The Lord has ordained praise to bring a release of His power and glory. Stop saying, “When is God going to do something in my life?” Start praising Him instead for what He has already done through the cross and resurrection. Jesus is alive! As you praise Him, you are releasing His resurrection power.

Put the devil in his proper place—under your feet. Don’t listen to his lies. Instead, magnify the Lord in your life and circumstance through praise.

We are praying for you every day!