Inspired by: Praise (Brandon Lake / Elevation Worship)
📍 Cleveland, Ohio | November 4, 2023
Malik Cooper was on the edge.
Not of a bridge. Not of life.
But of breaking.
Everything had hit at once.
Laid off from his job at the plant.
Eviction notice on the door.
And just two weeks earlier, he’d buried his mom—his best friend, his prayer warrior, his anchor.
Malik had been raised in church.
His mom could out-shout the choir with one hallelujah and dance circles around the pastor’s sermon with her joy.
But that Malik—the kid who once played drums during altar call—felt like a ghost.
Now all that remained was a grown man sitting in a dark, cold apartment with no heat, one folding chair, and a busted Bluetooth speaker.
It was around 2 a.m.
Too late for sleep.
Too early for hope.
He was pacing, fighting tears, when his finger—almost by instinct—tapped open a worship playlist his mom used to play.
🎶 “I’ll praise in the valley, praise on the mountain…”
He rolled his eyes.
“Easy to say when you’re on the mountain,” he muttered.
But then the lyrics dug in.
🎶 “I’ll praise when I’m sure, praise when I’m doubting…”
That one hit different.
Malik dropped to the floor.
Not to pray.
To weep.
To groan.
He was tired of pretending.
Tired of acting like he was strong.
And from that floor—face down on worn carpet, next to unpaid bills and silent walls—he whispered something that sounded less like confidence and more like surrender.
“God, I got nothing left…
but I will praise You.
Even if it’s just with what I’ve got left.”
What happened next wasn’t magic.
The lights didn’t flicker.
No angel appeared.
No surprise check slid under the door.
But the room changed.
Not because the atmosphere shifted—but because he did.
Praise cracked the ceiling open just enough for peace to get in.
For the darkness to lift… even a little.
He stood to his feet—slowly. Still broke. Still hurting.
But now?
He had a weapon.
The next morning, Malik walked to church in the cold.
No coat.
No fanfare.
But when the worship leader opened with a shout of praise, Malik didn’t hesitate.
He raised his hands.
And sang louder than anyone else in the room.
Not because life was fixed.
But because he remembered who his God was—even in the fire.
The Lesson
Praise is not a response to victory.
It’s a declaration before the battle is won.
It’s what you raise when your bank account is empty.
When the diagnosis just dropped.
When the prayer hasn’t been answered yet.
Praise is the sound of faith refusing to back down.
You don’t need a choir.
You don’t need a good mood.
You just need a decision.
To praise anyway.
To praise anyhow.
To praise because He’s still worthy.
Bible Verse
Habakkuk 3:17–18 (ESV)
“Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines…
yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.”
So when the night drags on,
when the silence gets heavy,
when you’ve run out of prayers—
Raise a praise.
Not because everything’s okay.
But because your God still is.
And He’s never lost a battle yet.
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