The shout wasn’t a war cry to bring down the walls – it was a celebration because the walls were already coming down. Joshua used present perfect tense: “The Lord has given you the city.” Faith celebrates before seeing results because God’s word is as good as accomplished.
This is perhaps the hardest part of God’s battle plan: praising Him for victories we haven’t yet seen with our natural eyes. Sometimes when we worship, our lives don’t match the songs we’re singing. But that’s exactly when our worship becomes most powerful – when we declare God’s faithfulness even though our circumstances haven’t changed yet.
When we praise God in advance for what He’s promised to do, we’re anchoring our hearts in His character rather than our circumstances. We’re declaring that His promises are more real than our current struggles.