Today I am sharing the conclusion of my communion time with the Holy Spirit on guarding our tongues by offering the sacrifice of praise to the Lord.

We must remain confident in the Lord and allow our words to agree with the Lord’s promises rather than the negative interpretation offered by the enemy. The Holy Spirit is with us to help us break the trends of shame and disgrace thus bringing us into the glory the Lord desires to manifest in our lives. No matter what you see happening around you, your mouth and words must never agree with the enemy, but they must always agree with the truth the Lord has spoken.

In John.16:13, Jesus teaches us about the Spirit of Truth, who guides us into all truth, as we need the Holy Spirit’s help because, when circumstances become difficult, our natural response may be to complain, speak negatively, or conclude that things will never change. However the Spirit of Truth helps us look beyond what is visible and remain aligned with what the Lord has said.

This reality does not mean that we pretend that difficulties do not exist, but it means that we refuse to allow those difficulties to dictate our confession or turn our hearts against the Lord’s way of doing things. The Holy Spirit our Counsellor teaches us how to respond in faith. He gives us the grace to praise the Lord when we would naturally complain, by giving thanks when we feel disappointed, and empowers us to remain confident when the outcome is not yet visible.

Our words must be governed by His truth, and not by the pressure of our negative circumstances. Remember the unfortunate situation that the Apostle Paul and Silas experienced in Macedonia.

In Acts.16:23-26, we read these words: “And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. 24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.”

Paul and Silas had been beaten and imprisoned for doing a good act for someone, and then they found themselves in an unjust and painful situation, locked up and confined in the inner prison with their feet fastened in stocks. Yet, at midnight, they were praying and singing hymns to God. How could they offer praise in such an unfortunate situation? They knew whom they served, and they were not going to offer Him complaints because of what they were experiencing. Instead, they chose to demonstrate to the prisoners the power of the Jesus they served by praising Him vigorously.

They did not allow their suffering to take the fruit of praise out of their mouths. So even though their circumstances were horrendous they did not become an excuse for them to speak against the Lord. Then came the extraordinary result through their praise, when suddenly a great earthquake shook the foundations of the prison, to the extent that every door opened, and everyone’s chains were loosed.

Their praise was followed by a remarkable manifestation of the Lord’s power, and the events that unfolded changed the lives of many. Those present in the prison witnessed the mighty hand of the Lord and saw what happened when His servants continued to honour Him through praise in adversity. Paul and Silas teach us through this experience that praise must not be reserved for the moment when everything is going well. We must praise the Lord in the middle of the battle, by trusting Him even when we cannot see how He will bring us through.

We must never allow our natural events to determine whether we will praise the Lord. This is because our praise must remain steadfast because He is worthy, regardless of what we are experiencing. I was reminded of a journey I made from Nigeria to Botswana, where it happened that when I arrived in Botswana, I was refused entry because Nigeria was on the list of Ebola-affected countries whose travellers were banned from entering Botswana.

The government decision had not been communicated to me before I made the journey. So only after arriving in Botswana, I was informed of the restriction and escorted by the Botswana immigration to leave the country and return on the next flight to Johannesburg. I had just completed a combined journey of approximately eight to ten hours and now I was being required to turn around and make another journey of over twelve hours, while facing the prospect of having missed out on everything I had planned to do in Botswana.

It was a very disappointing and exhausting situation, and satan was speaking loudly to me, by tempting me to speak negatively about Botswana and complain about the entire experience. However, thankfully, I resisted the urge to speak negatively and I chose instead to praise the Lord. As I made that choice, the peace of the Holy Spirit rested upon me, and He spoke to me and assured me that everything would be all right. He promised me that He would make it up to me, by sorting out the mess that had occurred, and recompense me for what I had experienced.

After spending approximately two hours in Botswana, I boarded the plane and began the return journey to Nigeria. As the plane took off, I experienced such remarkable peace that I began praying for Botswana with great joy, and nobody would have imagined what I had just gone through, considering the joy with which I was praying, even though I was tired and worn out from the journey. I refused to allow the disappointment to determine my words or rob me of my peace, but instead, I chose to trust the Lord and continue praising Him.

The Lord made it up to me because one year later, I returned to Botswana, this time travelling from the United Kingdom. At the airport, I met the same person who had refused me entry when I had arrived from Nigeria. He remembered me and was happy to give me a warm welcome. What an encouragement this was! It helped me to reinforce the truth that it is always worthwhile to offer the Lord the sacrifice of praise in any and every situation.

When we praise the Lord rather than agree with the enemy’s negative interpretation of events, we remain open to the Holy Spirit’s direction and work. He can always bring peace in the midst of disappointment and demonstrate the mighty hand of the Lord in circumstances that initially appeared unfavourable. I have experienced many other difficult situations during air travel, particularly when entering different regions and nations to bring the good news of the Kingdom. These situations have sometimes placed me under immense pressure to speak words of complaint.

However, as I have chosen to offer the sacrifice of praise with my lips, I have watched the Holy Spirit change the dynamics of those situations, to the point where He has given me favourable entry into particular nations and increased favour for the trips. These experiences have taught me that it is always much more worthwhile to do what the Holy Spirit says, even when His instruction seems unusual in the circumstances.

When the natural response is to complain, the Holy Spirit will always lead us to give thanks. When disappointment threatens to overwhelm us, He can teach us to remain peaceful and confident in the Lord’s ability to bring forth good out of impossible situations. When the enemy tries to use an event to provoke negative speech, we can refuse that temptation and continue to praise the Lord because we know He is in charge of all things.

As we obey Him, the Holy Spirit steps in and makes a difference, because He can turn a distressing experience into an opportunity to witness His faithfulness and bring about a beautiful reward of triumph on our behalf. We must therefore learn to respond to life’s challenges in a way that honours the Lord. We should never allow inconvenience, fatigue, delays, rejection, or unexpected obstacles to take praise out of our mouths because our circumstances may change from day to day, but our commitment to praise the Lord must remain steadfast.

My prayer for you this morning is that, as you hear these words, you will find the grace made available through the Holy Spirit to offer the Lord your sacrifice of praise through your lips and continually give thanks to His name. May you experience the mighty hand of the Lord changing negative circumstances in your life.

May your experiences become stories of infallible evidence that the Word of God works in every instance, regardless of what arises to challenge it, as long as you allow your mouth to agree with the Lord. As you learn to praise Him continually, may the Holy Spirit lead you into situations where you witness His faithfulness, peace, favour, and miraculous intervention. May the things He accomplishes on your behalf become testimonies that encourage others to believe that the Word of God is real and works.

This grace given to you by the Holy Spirit will empower you to become a more valuable witness to the people around you. As your life will demonstrate that the Lord is faithful and that His Word can be trusted even when circumstances appear contrary to His promises. Remember that the goal is not just merely to change the words we speak outwardly, but It is to allow the Holy Spirit to transform our hearts so that outbursts of praise becomes our continual response to the Lord.

In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, I declare that, by the grace and help of the Holy Spirit, my mouth shall continually offer the sacrifice of praise to the Lord. I declare that my lips shall be filled with thanksgiving, and my words shall honour the Lord and agree with His truth. I receive the grace to guard my tongue and to speak with wisdom, faith, and reverence.

I will not allow idle words, complaints, accusations, or negative declarations to govern my life. I will not speak words against the Lord or question the value of serving Him because of my temporary difficulties, because my confidence remains in His faithfulness and the truth of His Word.

I declare that the Holy Spirit, who is also the Spirit of Truth, is helping me to align my words with the Lord’s promises. So that no matter what I see happening around me, I will not allow the enemy to dictate the fruit of my lips. I will praise the Lord in favourable seasons and difficult seasons, in times of abundance and in times of waiting, because He is worthy of continual praise.

I declare that just like Paul and Silas, I will pray and sing praises to God even in the middle of adversity. So that just like my experience in Botswana, you will resist the temptation to complain when negative circumstances disappoint you. I declare that you will receive the peace of the Holy Spirit, then follow His direction, and trust the Lord to demonstrate His mighty hand in His way and in His time concerning your life progression.

I repent of every negative word I have ever spoken against the Lord and every declaration that has contradicted His truth. I receive the abundant grace to change my speech, correct myself immediately when I fall short, and return to the pathway of praise, pleasantness, and peace. I declare that my life shall become a testimony of the faithfulness of the Lord’s Word. So that as I continually offer the sacrifice of praise, I will witness the help, favour, peace, direction, and miraculous intervention of the Lord.

I declare that my experiences shall provide evidence of the Lord’s goodness and provide encouragement to others to trust Him. From this day forward, my mouth is an offering of praise to the Lord, and I will no longer allow natural events to silence my thanksgiving or turn my heart against the Lord. My words shall agree with His truth, my heart shall remain confident in His faithfulness, and my life shall testify to the mighty hand of the Lord.

I receive the abundance of grace to live daily in a state of high praise to the Lord, by giving thanks to His name and honouring Him in every situation I face in life. I declare that the Holy Spirit will help me, by teaching me, and He will strengthen me to remain steadfast and immovable in this commitment to offer the sacrifice of praise continually in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.