Our Praise and Prayer in Times of Suffering Mark 14:26, NIV “When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” Hallelujah! I would like to share the grace of God under the title, “Our Praise and Prayer in Times of Suffering,” which is based on Mark 14:26. Please repeat after me: Our Praise and Prayer in Times of Suffering - Our Praise and Prayer in Times of Suffering. Praise is one of the privileges and blessings that God has given to Christians. Even when we are sad and often dismay; if we praise the Lord, He will pour unspeakable comfort upon us. He comforts and encourages us. He gives us peace; drawing us closer to Him. He helps us to trust and love Him more. This is why we need to praise the Lord as much as possible. Martin Luther, the Reformer, once said, “The greatest gift that God has given to us is praise.” It is true. Our life should be a life of praises. Praise is the stepping stone from earth to heaven. We will leave all other things behind when we leave this world but we will take our praises with us to heaven. Hallelujah! We will praise the Lord forever and ever in heaven. We must give thanks to God for giving us this privilege to praise Him. We should be grateful. According to the Bible, the Lord is enthroned in our praises. First, I want to speak about God who is enthroned in our praises. Psalm 22:3 says: “Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel.” You are the praise of Israel! When we praise the Lord, He will dwell in our praises, receiving glory from us and bestowing His grace upon us. He takes delight in our praises. The heavenly hosts are praising the Lord even now. When Isaiah went to the temple courts, He saw the door of heaven opened and saw the splendor of heaven. Seraphs were praising the Lord there. Isaiah 6:3 says: “And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’ ” Hallelujah! The seraphs were praising the Lord, saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty.” We were created to proclaim the praises of the Lord. God formed us so that we may proclaim His praise. Isaiah 43:21 says: “…the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.” As God’s chosen people, it is our duty to praise God. God will receive glory from us through our praises. Hudson Taylor is called the father of China Inland Mission. Even though he was born and raised in a Christian home, he moved away from his Christian beliefs until the age of 17. One time when his mother was staying with some friends; she pleaded with God for the conversion of her only boy on bended knees in her bedroom. She became so burdened that she resolved she would not leave that room until the Lord had saved him. Hour after hour she continued in fervent, importunate, believing prayer until she was thoroughly persuaded that God had answered her petitions and given her the salvation of her son as the desire of her heart. At the very time Taylor’s mother was miles away, interceding for his soul; the young man was reading an evangelistic tract pamphlet, called “The finished work of Christ.” He asked himself, “What was finished?” Taylor read in the pamphlet that Jesus had paid through His death on the Cross the price for our sins. Jesus brought salvation to mankind, bearing the full penalty of all mankind’s curses, despair, diseases, pains, and all other suffering. He thought, “Then, if the work of atonement is finished, what is there left for me to do?” Taylor instantly comprehended God’s plan of wondrous salvation. Taylor perceived that he was saved and had eternal life by believing on Jesus who bore the wrath and curse due to sin. He professed his faith in Christ. Taylor made a resolution to praise and live for the Lord the rest of his life. His commission to praise the Lord changed his life and made him the father of China Inland Mission. It is true. I pray that you will praise the Lord throughout your life after believing in Jesus. Repeat after me: “I will praise the Lord throughout my life - I will praise the Lord throughout my life. Hebrews 13:15 says: “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise-the fruit of lips that confess his name.” This Scripture says that praise is the fruit of lips that confess His name. Praise is our offering of sacrifice to the Lord. The Lord will receive our praises and pour His abundant grace upon us. When King David was bringing the Ark of the Lord back to Jerusalem, he appointed some Levites to give thanks and praises to the Lord, the God of Israel. 1 Chronicles 16:4 says: “He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel.” They did not simply praise the Lord but gave thanks, with praises to the Lord. I want you to praise the Lord with thanksgiving. How did they praise the Lord? 1 Chronicles 16:23 says: “Sing to the LORD, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day.” Hallelujah! The book of Psalms is the thickest book in the Bible. It contains the petitions and prayers of the Israelites. They praised the Lord with psalms. Nothing is more important than praises in worship services. Praise is a prayer with melodies. Psalm 72:19-20 says: “Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen. This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.” Praise be to his glorious name-the glorious name of our God-forever! We must give thanks to God in all circumstances. We must praise God when we are happy or sad and when things are tough and frustrating. No matter what kind of trouble may try to sweep over us; if we give thanks and praises to the Lord, He will delight in our praises and will pour His wondrous grace upon us. When we praise the Lord in times of sorrow, He will give us comfort, peace, and courage. When we praise the Lord in times of pain and agony, He will give us hope so that we can overcome trouble. When we praise the Lord in times of joy, He will give us greater joy. Hallelujah! The Lord will help us to feel His abundant grace in our lives. Therefore, we must always give thanks and praises to the Lord. God will give us a fullness of joy when we praise the Lord. We will be filled with gratitude and hope. When we give praises to the Lord, evil spirits will be cast out. David demonstrated this when he often took his harp and playing before King Saul. David’s praises to God would sooth Saul’s spirit and the evil spirit that often tormented Saul would leave. 1 Samuel 16:23 says: “Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.” Praise has great power. When you praise, evil spirits will be cast out. Worry, trouble, anxiety, and uneasiness will leave you. You will be filled with marvelous peace from the Lord. We must always give praises and thanks to the Lord. When we praise the Lord with thanksgiving in times of hardships and trouble; God changes our hearts to enjoy both spiritual and physical blessings in our situation. The Bible tells us to guard our hearts above anything else. Indeed, we must guard our thoughts. There is no room for worry, anxiety, or uneasiness in our hearts when we praise the Lord. All our worry from this world will evaporate when we pray and praise the Lord. Hatred cannot enter into our hearts when we pray and praise the Lord. This is why we must open our hearts of praise to the Lord. We must wake up in the morning and praise the Lord. We must give thanks and praises to the Lord when we are driving. Hallelujah! We should give thanks and praises to the Lord when we are doing dishes at home. We must make praise a natural part of our life. We must always keep praises on our lips. We conclude our Wednesday worship services with “God is so good.” When we sing, “God is so good,” this praise should remain with us throughout the week because God is so good! Hallelujah! Some Christians are unable to stop listening to contemporary secular music. I am certain there is no such person here; but I am equally certain that such a person is somewhere ‘out there.’ One day I happened to get into somebody’s car. As soon as he started his engine, secular music filled his car. This person mumbled in embarrassment: “Oh, why is this music playing?” He obviously enjoyed listened to popular secular music and was caught by me. His identity is my secret and his privacy. But my point is well made. As Christians, we must put off our old habits. We must praise the Lord. Our praises to God revive and change our hearts. Praising the Lord renews us and brings God’s grace to us. When we praise the Lord, we are renewed. As long as we praise, we cannot hold hatred or grudges in our hearts. We have peace when we praise the Lord. Then we can forgive, better understand and comfort one another. David praised in Psalm 103:1: “Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.” All my inmost being, praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! I have often made reference to George Beverly Shea. He is a famous gospel singer who ministered with the Billy Graham Crusade Team. Mr. Shea used to be a clerk in Mutual of New York Life Insurance Company. One time, Shea sang on an NBC radio amateur hour program. That one time initiated Shea’s fame as a singer. Shea impressed his critics and scores of fans; but he still did not feel he had discovered true direction for his life. One Sunday morning, 23 year old Shea went to a piano and saw a poem written in his mother’s handwriting sitting there. She had copied the words of a poem written by Mrs. Rhea F. Miller and left it beside the piano, possibly for her son to find. The Holy Spirit touched Mr. Shea’s heart as he read that poem. Through eyes glistening with many tears, Shea re-wrote that poem and composed a song which soon became a famous church hymn - Hymn Number 102 in our Hymnal. I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold; I’d rather be His than have riches untold; I’d rather have Jesus than houses or lands; I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand Than to be the king of a vast domain, Or be held in sin’s dread sway; I’d rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today. Hallelujah! One day at a large Crusade in Amsterdam, Netherlands George Beverly Shea sang praises in front of a large audience. Deeply moved by his praises, people responded, cheering him with a standing ovation. As soon as their hand clapping subsided, Shea said, “Thank you very much but I will not trade Christ for your applause.” It is true. What can we trade Jesus for? We will give thanks, praise, and glory to our Lord. As His faithful servants, let us be humbly broken before the Lord. Let us praise Him and live for the glory of God throughout our lives. Second, God wants us to praise Him when we are in trouble. The night before His crucifixion, after the Last Supper, Jesus sang on the way to Gethsemane. He went up to the Mount of Olives with praises on his lips. While on route to Gethsemane in the Mount of Olives Jesus was singing hymns. Mark 14:26 says: “When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” Jesus was going to be crucified the day after Gethsemane. One can only imagine how heavy His heart must have felt! But Jesus walked the path of darkness which led to His death singing hymns rather than lamenting his sorrows. He praised God instead of grumbling to God. Our lives are often strewn with many strained situations. We encounter many problems and temptations which often leave us completely powerless, sometimes even to the point of preferring death over life on earth. During those times I admonish and encourage you to go before the Lord with praises on your lips. When you cannot pray - praise. When you cannot praise - listen to praises and sing along in your heart: “I love You, Lord. I trust in You! I concentrate on You!” God will perform great wonders for us when we march on, singing hymns. On his second missionary journey, Paul and Silas went to Philippi to preach the Gospel. There they were falsely accused, beaten up, and thrown into prison. Their bodies bore many bruises, aches and pains; but they praised the Lord. Paul and Silas neither grumbled nor complained. Less spiritual people would have protested: “Lord, why should I be persecuted while I am doing Your work? It is not fair. How can this happen to me?” Scripture does not give this testimony of Paul and Silas. Acts 16:25-26 says: “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose.” As Paul and Silas prayed and praised God, leaving all complaining and grumbling behind as part of the vanity of dead works; God turned that prison into a testimony of hope for many hardened criminals who were listening that night. God sent a violent earthquake, and shook the very foundation of the prison. Prison doors swung open and every prisoner’s chains came loose. When we are thrown into a prison of despair, sorrow, and pain, we must praise the Lord. We must pray to God. Then God will shake the foundations of our prison of despair. He will open all prison doors and loose all our chains. Do not worry. Do not be dismayed. The Lord is with you. In 2 Chronicles, Chapter 20, the Moabites along with other nations came to make war on Judah. Judah despaired of this vast army coming against them so they prayed and God answered: “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. I will receive glory from this.” God promised Judah victory. King Jehoshaphat consulted with his people and appointed men to strategically sing to the Lord. These songsters sang and praised the Lord marching in front of the army. Which army in this world meets a fully equipped enemy with praises? But Judah marched on, completely confident that they would win the war. They went forward, singing praises to their God. 2 Chronicles 20:21-22 says: “After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever.’ As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated.” As Judah began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the armies of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir; and decisively defeated Judah’s allied enemies. Judah won that battle without having to use their swords. When allied enemies attack you, when problems sweep over you, praise the Lord. Give thanks to Him. Since the battle belongs to God, He will give you a great victory. So do not despair. Do not be dismayed. Do not be sad. March forward with faith, singing praises. One day while giving a lecture at a conference, Dr. Sang-Eun Park, President of Sam Medical Clinic, Korea, showed a grotesque picture of a man who looked more monster than human. This man’s whole face was covered with black cancerous lumps. These lumps were like grapes, even covering this man’s eyes and mouth. This picture was a very horrible sample of humanity. Why did Dr. Park show this picture? Dr. Park explained that he had once treated this patient, in the terminal stage of skin cancer. He did not have many days left to live but when Dr. Park approached this patient, he heard a humming sound. He was singing a hymn ? Hymn number 23 in our Hymnal. O for a thousand tongues to sing My great Redeemer’s praise; The glories of my God and King, The triumphs of His grace. Although this man’s face was horrifically disfigured by skin cancer, and he was soon to die; he was singing praises to God. O for a thousand tongues to sing My great Redeemer’s praise; The glories of my God and King, The triumphs of His grace. Hallelujah! This is what the children of God should do. Christians do not despair or sit back in frustration just because there are problems. True Christians praise the Lord from the place of deepest hopelessness, and rise up above all their problems. I want you to praise the Lord. When you are sad or in pain, or even when you might be facing death like the man with skin cancer who sang hymns until his last moments; I pray that you will sing praises to the Lord and thus overcome all forms of despair, problems, and difficulties. Psalm 40:2-3 says: “He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.” Hallelujah! We continually encounter many unexpected problems in the course of our lives. As there are high tides and ebb tides at the shores; so are problems which come with rage only to retreat. It is indeed difficult for us to handle all the problems that come to our lives. However, praise the Lord whenever you encounter problems. Pray to the Lord. He will solve all your problems. When you are perplexed, powerless to do anything, praise the Lord. Pray to God. Ask for His help. As Jesus sang a hymn right before He was crucified, let us also offer the sacrifice of praises to the Lord. Jesus prayed right before His suffering on the Cross. Third, I want to speak about God who wants us to pray when we are in trouble. Jesus went to a small place on a hill called Gethsemane and began to pray. He fervently prayed to God. We must pray when we face problems. We will not be able to solve any problems if we do not pray. Mark 14:32-34 says, “They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Sit here while I pray.’ He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ‘My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,’ he said to them. ‘Stay here and keep watch.’ ” Jesus said, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” Why did He say so? He knew that He would be crucified the following morning. He knew that He would have to take all the sin of humankind and die on the Cross. His relationship with God would be severed on the Cross. In fact, Jesus cried out to God, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” There is no other place in the Bible in which Jesus called God, “My God.” He always called and referred to God as “Father.” He called God “My God” only once in the Bible. On the Cross, when Jesus took upon Himself all the sin of humankind; He was so disfigured and marred that God turned His face from Him. This terror-stricken one time, Jesus called God “My God,” not “Father.” Knowing what would happen to Him, Jesus said, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” He prayed so fervently that his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Luke 22:44 says: “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” According to Hebrews, Jesus offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears. Hebrews 5:7 says: “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.” But during this most painful time, the disciples slept. It was not time for them to sleep. His disciples were sleeping while the Lord was praying so fervently that his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Jesus prayed alone. Mark 14:36 says: “‘Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.’ ” Not what I will, but what you will. Jesus bore the suffering on the Cross without protest. “Yet not what I will, but what you will.” If it was God’s will that Jesus take upon Himself the sin of humankind by the shedding of His blood and a painful death on the Cross; then He would willingly take the Cross. The path of death that no one else could walk; Jesus walked alone. Do you think your life is lonely and hard? Think about Jesus. Whose life has been lonelier than Jesus? Who has had a harder time on earth than Jesus? His disciples were asleep, maybe even snoring, while Jesus spent His last moments praying and crying to prepare for His soon-coming Crucifixion. There are times when we feel lonely and weary in serving the Lord. At such times, look unto the Lord Jesus. He will comfort you. He will be with you. He wants to use you. I urge you to cry out to the Lord in prayer in times of trouble. Jeremiah 33:3 says: “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” According to 2 King, Chapter 20, King Hezekiah wept bitterly and prayed to God. On the fourteenth year of his reign, when Hezekiah was only 39, he was ill to the point of death. The prophet Isaiah went to him and said, “Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.” Hezekiah was shocked: “I am too young to die!” So he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, “Remember, O Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes. Look at my tears and make me live. Extend my life, Lord.” Hezekiah wept bitterly. What prayer is stronger and more fervent than those of a dying man? Hezekiah fervently prayed, asking God to extend his life. He focused on the Lord who heard his prayers and subsequently added fifteen more years to his life. Hallelujah! Are you surrounded by a wall of hopelessness ?worse still, sorrow or death? Or are you surrounded by a wall of disease? Then turn your face to that wall and pray to the Lord. “Lord, save me. Extend my life. Make me live. Give me another chance.” Then that wall will collapse. A wall of hope will replace any wall of hopelessness. A wall of joy will replace a wall of sorrow. A wall of health will replace a wall of disease. Cry out to the Lord. James 5:13 says: “Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.” We must come to the Lord with praise even in times of suffering. We must also cry out to the Lord in prayer. Our God is the God of love. He is a good God. He bends His ears to our prayers. And He answers our prayers. Do not despair. Do not give up. Do not step backward. Let us march forward with praise, prayer, and thanksgiving, fixing our eyes on Jesus who is the author and perfector of our faith. It is my earnest prayer for you. Let us pray. Our Father of infinite love, grace, and mercy, help us pray and praise in our times of despair and suffering. As Jesus sang a hymn when He went to the Mount of Olives right before His Crucifixion; help us to be obedient to Your will through prayers. Bless us so that we will overcome all our problems through prayer and praise. I pray in the Name of Jesus. Amen. 10