Praise God in spite of the fact that your world is in a vice. Sing praise that pushes through the wall of all adversity.
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.
(Heb. 13:15)
“My day was the worst! I was late to work after school, then I forgot my money for lunch. I saw someone wearing the exact same shirt as me. I even had a fight with my best friend.”
And you say, “Praise the Lord?” It’s great praising God when things are great. But praising Him in everything? Right—give me a break!
How do you offer a sacrifice of praise to God when your day is rotten and you feel terrible? Simple. Don’t praise God for the problem; praise God in spite of the problem. Praise Him through the problem. Satan gets smashed every time God gets glory instead of grumbling. Plug into God’s power with praise. Praise Him before He meets your needs.
So, you think God doesn’t care about your circumstance? Of course He does! But He cares first and foremost about you and your response. With a response of faith and praise from you, God will work miracles in spite of your circumstances. So don’t pray, “God change that!”
Instead pray, “God, change me!” Changed, we can confront and overcome every circumstance. Be an “overcomer,” not a victim! Instead of being sour and depressed about your problems, offer up praise to Him no matter what the situation.
Offer God this sacrifice of praise in your times of trial: “I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart!” (Ps. 9:1).
Excerpt permission granted by Albury Publishing
Carman Domenic Licciardello is an enigma in Christian music, often described as part evangelist, part Vegas Showman. His concerts were more like a rock and roll Billy Graham Crusade than a Christian music event. After all the singing, dancing, clapping, and preaching, crowds of people would stream down to the counseling area to accept Christ-many times as many as 5,000 in an evening.
Admission was usually free; a simple offering was taken, similar to 30,000 churches on Sunday mornings. And he filled the largest stadiums the world over. Carman held the record for the largest Christian concert ever in Dallas, Texas. But it even goes beyond that. Take the Mega Stadium acts that played the famed landmark such as Pink Floyd, U 2, Madonna, The Jackson Five, Paul McCartney, Garth Brooks, and even Metallic. As the newspapers noted, you'll see that the one-act that drew the highest attendance in Texas Stadium was Carman, with 71,132.
Carman (1956-2021) was a popular contemporary Christian singer and songwriter.
Born Carman Licciardello, he began recording under his first name and released his debut album in 1980. Carman began charting contemporary Christian hits in 1984 with "Sunday's on the Way," reaching No. 1 with "The Champion" (1986) and "Radically Saved" (1988). His other hit songs include "Lord of All," "Jesus Is the Light," and "Satan, Bite the Dust!" Carman reportedly holds the world record for the largest audience at a Christian concert. His popularity was at its height in the 1980s and early '90s, but he continued releasing albums for years, including his most recent release, 2014's "No Plan B." In 2018, he was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.
