Praise as a Gateway

Before any request, before any confession, before any list of needs — praise. That's the order of Psalm 100, and there's deep wisdom in it.

When you begin your prayer with gratitude and praise, something shifts in your heart before another word is said. You reorient yourself. You remember who God is before you remember what you need from Him. And that transforms the quality of every prayer that follows.

Praise isn't the warm-up before the "real" prayer. Praise is prayer — perhaps the purest kind there is. Because in praise, you're not asking for anything. You're acknowledging.

Start today differently. Before you speak your needs, spend a few minutes simply acknowledging who God is. List three things you're grateful for. Let your heart fill with God before it fills with problems.

You'll discover that problems shrink when seen from the vantage point of praise.