"Proclaim God's Glory"

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork." Psalms 19:1

At times in our lives, we may have gone through a series of trials. Instead of calling them trials, maybe we should call them "blessings through faith".  Throughout our lives, we will come to a point where we can either choose to lift our arms in praise to our Lord for what He has allowed to come into our lives, or we can choose to wallow in self pity. In God's Word, I have been constantly reading, how I should praise Him no matter what.
How can I praise Him when everything seems to be turned upside down for me and my loved ones? How can I praise Him when I don't know the outcome of how our circumstances will turn out? Well, He tells me that He knows the outcome even when I don't, and He can turn things that seem upside down to us, right-side up.  Proverbs 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." 
In 2013-2014, we had been on a journey of unknowns, as we moved from one dwelling place to another. The Lord throughout all of this showed us His loving kindness through the love and prayers of our brothers and sisters in the Lord. We definitely saw our Jehovah Jireh in all of this. Through injuries and even through health issues , He never left our side. We continually lifted our arms in praise to our Creator, Redeemer, Provider, and our Great Physician.
Through His Word, I have read that if I do not praise Him, His creation will do it! How can I not praise Him? He has protected my family through various circumstances we have faced and He has provided abundantly for our needs. He cares so much more for my family and myself than His other creations; because He died for us, He died for all of us!!!
That summer as we lived in a place for a few weeks, I had asked the Lord what I could do to say "Thank-You" to Him and to the ones who allowed us to stay in the place we were at. The art I do belongs to Him and I constantly want to give back to Him what He has given to me. When the Lord showed me that I was to do a mural in the place we had just stayed at, I went and received permission to do it. I felt the place needed to be brightened up as an encouragement to others who would be staying there also. Now, I knew how I was going to thank Him, but what was I going to paint? The Lord so quietly showed me through a photo I saw on a friend's Facebook page.
He and his family went out west that summer for vacation and one place they stopped at was the Grand Canyon. That place definitely yells its praises to its Creator as it screams of God's handiwork throughout the whole place. As my friend stood there looking out at God's creation, he had his arms raised up in praise to his and their Creator. It was almost as if the Lord took me there as I looked at the pictures and started to paint. As I painted, I felt the Lord painting through me.
I poured out my heart to the Lord as I painted, giving Him ALL our concerns and leaving them at the altar of His throne. Each crevice I painted, reminded me of the crevices of my life. It is through these times that I draw ever closer to my Lord and Savior. It is through these times I know Him more and it is through these times that I feel that strength to overcome the circumstances of life because it is He who gives that to me. It is He who makes Himself known to me in such an intimate way, that all I can do is look up and give Him praise.
As my friend had his arms lifted up in praise to his Creator and giving God praise for His handiwork, I too lift my arms up in praise to my Heavenly Father, the Creator and Redeemer of my soul for He truly is majestic! No matter what circumstance comes your way, will you "Proclaim God's Glory"?  No matter the outcome? I choose to!