“Firsts” can be good or bad. First place is usually good, as are first-class and first-rate. First-degree is usually bad, as is the need for first aid, and the first half, and the first baseman can be either. While thinking about this, I recalled several of my firsts, along with a one- or two-word thought concerning each of them.

In today’s post, I would like to highlight two biblical accounts that illustrate the power of praise. The first is from 2 Chronicles, chapter 20. In this passage, Judah was about to be invaded by a great multitude of Moabites, Ammonites, and Meunites (vs. 1-2). Judah’s king, Jehoshaphat, called for prayer. “We don’t know what to do,” he said to the Lord, “but our eyes are on You” (v. 12).