When do I give praise?

I have been mostly offline the past week enjoying my husbands leave time. We are past half way now and he will be heading back to Iraq soon.Looking back over this amazingly wonderful week and looking ahead to the sad prospect of him leaving has put a lot on my mind.

I know that I am quick to praise the Lord when times are good.When I am feeling blessed.Our family has been doing a lot of praising this week =0) But how quick will I be to praise God when I am not feeling so blessed?

We all have trials in our lives. Some small and some big. The death of a loved one, a wayward child,loss of a job,a deployment,home school burnout the list could go on and on. During these times do we praise the Lord as we should? I know I am fast to ask for help when I am facing a trial but not always fast to give praise and thanks.

In Psalms we are told : “Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord.Praise ye the Lord.”  One thing I love about God is that he does not mince words. His scriptures and the words of the prophets are clear. We should continually praise the Lord. For the good and the bad in our lives.

This is my goal for the next week. My husband will be going back to Iraq. I will fear for his life every second of every day. My children will cry and need comfort because they miss their daddy and I will be alone.But I will praise God. I will praise Him because He has given me all that I have and because through this trial we are strengthened as a family and because we are learning to lean on God and look to Him for our strength.

My prayer for you all is that you will be able to praise God in ALL things. That you will find joy in the sweet blessings of life and that you will find strength and comfort in the Lord during your trials.