He is my Source of Calm

“I will praise you with an upright heart”  

Psalm 119:7

There are times in my life when instead of praising God with an “upright’ heart, I have an uptight heart! Stressed out over deadlines, commitments, finances, and family concerns, I screech into the throne room to pray feeling frantic and frazzled.  Thankfully, the beauty of praising God is that it is transformative.  In other words, as I choose to praise Jesus Christ the Holy Spirit brings my heart into alignment with His. God is never frantic or frazzled.  So as I am praising Jesus my heart is changed from “uptight” to upright!

Author Sarah Young wrote, “When you feel flustered and frazzled on the outside, do not get upset with yourself. You are only human and the swirl of events going on all around you will sometimes feel overwhelming. Rather than scolding yourself for your humanness, remind yourself that I am both with you and within you.” Rather than scolding yourself, I would like to suggest that you praise your way out of tension! 

Praise Challenge:

Today, spend time praising God that He is the ruler over your emotions. Use sentences in your praise time like, “Lord, I praise you that I feel frantic and frazzled today, when I look at my ‘to do’ list. I praise you that you are the author of time, that you promise to accomplish what concerns me, and to fulfill your purposes for me. (Psalm 138:8) You promise to empower me with your Spirit.  You are more than able to accomplish what needs to be done today.”

Then, throughout the day whenever you feel stressed, swamped, frantic or frazzled, stop. Take a deep breath and then praise God that the Holy Spirit lives within you and that He is never uptight. Praise Him that He is willing and able to transform your heart from uptight to upright.

Praise Tip:

Take a praise walk today. The combination of praising God and walking releases endorphins and relieves stress!