Rejoice, Praise, and Be Glad

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This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24)

On most days, I repeat this verse while I am still in bed. Doing this helps me have a good outlook on my day. However, this does not guarantee me a perfect day or a day without trials.

I heard a friend of mine preach a sermon on living in the moment. In it, she told us about taking each day as it came and not to look ahead to the next one, especially if we may have fears about what lay ahead for us. I have found that I am a happier person because I have practiced living in the moment.

Living in the moment also means I can’t dwell on the past. Yes, there are memories I have that, if I often rehashed them, would wreck my emotional balance. I only speak of those past events when I believe someone’s knowledge of those times will make a difference for him or her.

God gives us each day as a gift. When we learn to use that day wisely, we honor God. (As I write this, a close friend of mine has been ill for over a week.) Sometimes, how we spend ourdays as a change from what we call normal. Some days and even some weeks are busier than others. 

We can learn to find joy in whatever God sets before us. (James 1:2) There are times we have to search for the glimmers of joy as we go through a trial. Some of the lessons we learn because of those trials have great value to us.   

The psalmist, then tells us to be glad. Gladness sometimes comes easier than we think it would.  Someone receives a promotion or a raise at work. Someone gets a new car. Are we happy for them? Suppose you had been interviewed for that promotion and that someone was your friend? Yes, we are to be glad for them.

Praise God for His Steadfastness, etc.

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“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Psalm 73:25-26 (ESV)

A Psalm of Asaph: The writer of this Psalm found himself envious of those who were ‘full of themselves.’ Those whom he looked up to were prideful, violent, profane, mouthy, and wicked.

The writer sees, God for who He is, his protector, his guide. He realizes God holds his right hand and He will receive this person into glory.

In our focus verses, the writer gives God praise that He is the only one in heaven and that he desires nothing on earth but to please the LORD. He attests to God’s place in his life, everything else may stop working as before, but God is where the psalmist’s strength lies and the psalmist knows that God has given him a share of heaven eternally

God does not give up on us. We give up on Him and we have to learn when we feel God is far away, it is us who have moved. We need to recognize we are the ones who stray from God.

Let’s praise Him for His tenacity and his great love for us. He loves us even when we happen to mess up.

I am taking a blog break until November 27^th. We had a wedding anniversary on the 9^th. This past Sunday, (Nov. 12) our small Drama Ministry gave a play entitled, “Thanksgiving.” I wrote the script and directed the drama. On the 16^th, I received my hearing aids. Tomorrow, I will participate in an Artisan Fair at our local library where I will be signing books.  My previous book signings have been learning experiences for me. Actually, I am posting this a week ahead of time. That means I can start my break earlier and, hopefully, get more things done. In the meantime, Happy Thanksgiving to each of you.

Give Praise

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The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

The Lord is good to all and his mercy is over all he has made.

Psalm 145:8-9 (ESV)

David gives praise to God in this passage. Let’s see what he says about our heavenly Father.

 The Lord is gracious and merciful,

 We have scriptures that tell of the Father’s grace, His granting things we don’t deserve. He gives us evidence of showing His people His mercy, the withholding of what we do deserve.

Slow to anger,

 Have you even know anyone who never seems to get angry? Or it takes a lot for them to become irritated? God’s strength lies in His capacity to not be caught off-guard by anything we do. He can handle anything we ‘give Him’, even our own anger.

The Lord is good to all,

As children, we were taught the table grace, “God is great, God is good, and we thank Him for our food . . . .” When we take the time, we see that goodness in our world. Right now, we see the leaves change colors as He prepares the trees for their winter’s rest. I believe He does this to protect those trees and to ultimately shield us, His children, from harm.

His mercy is over all he has made.

God watches over all his children. He tries to keep those children safe from harm. I say He tries.  Because sometimes, He can’t due to the strong will of certain of His children.

As we celebrate the season of Thanksgiving, let’s all seek to give praise to the LORD for all he has done for us.

He Is God

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Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations before the mountains were brought forth,

or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Psalm 90:1-2 (ESV)

  

This psalm is a prayer of Moses.  He gives praise to God for being present with the Israelites forever. Moses reminds us that God was present before the land was dotted with mountains and even before God formed the earth. (See Genesis 1:1-2) He gives praise to God for being who He is throughout all eternity.

Do we praise God enough for who He is—our Creator, the Sustainer of all things, the Father of us all? In searching for graphics to accompany these posts, I saw a meme that really spoke to me.

            “There are two times to praise the LORD- when you feel like it and when you don’t.”

I believe Moses had times when he didn’t feel like praising God. When he heard the Israelites grumble about being in the desert and what he saw when he came down the mountain where he met with God and saw that idol the people had made come to mind.

As I compose this the words of Mother Teresa come to me. She listed several scenarios we are faced with in life, her response to each instance is we are to “do it anyway.” In each circumstance she gives us, she tells us to follow Jesus’ example to remedy the problem. Yes, due to our humanity, we have times when we don’t want to give God praise.

However, we are told to praise the Lord for everything. I know what that means to me, what does that mean to you? 

Praise God for His Strength and Power

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Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, and whose power is in the skies. Awesome is God from his sanctuary; the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people. Psalm 68:34-35 (ESV)

David continues praising God for His power and strength. At the same time, he tells us to recognize that God is the source of our strength. He reminds us to continue to give praise for the LORD’s attributes. It is God who gives us strength to meet our needs and the power to stand for Him.

This passage reminds me of the words of Paul, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I have had times when I felt I just couldn’t do something that I had planned. Then, I continue and do that activity. After that time, I find myself amazed that I had accomplished that task—in spite of myself. Reflecting on those things, I realize that God was there giving me strength, support, and power.   

Sing Praises to the LORD

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O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; sing praises to the LORD, (Selah)

To him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens,

behold he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.

Psalm 68:32-33 (ESV)

David penned these words to the choirmaster.

He directs the nations to sing to the Father and magnifies his thought by telling the people groups to sing praises to God. Then David tells us to intently study that thought. (Selah) God is over the heavens and has been since before He created the earth. God speaks over the earth. At times He has to get our attention, then He uses a booming voice that, no matter who we are, we have to listen to.

Some of my friends choose not to sing, even in a large congregation. They tell others that they can’t sing. Psalm 100 tells us to make a joyful noise to the Lord. We sing as a part of our worship. I have sung in the choirs of two churches, but I was not a soloist. I had to quit because of an ear problem and a chronic cough. However, I still sing out when I am in corporate worship. As I stated earlier, I try to start my day with what I will call mental singing—a song gets into my brain and my heart and I hear it throughout the day.

God’s children know He can be found everywhere and can be heard in the smallest whispers. However when His people allow things to get ‘out of hand,’ the Father has to get stern with us and get our attention by showing His strength in ways that we have to stand back and watch.

Praise God for the Strength He Gives

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Both riches and honor come from you and rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand, it is to make great and to give strength to all.  1 Chronicles 29:12 (ESV)

All we have or ever will possess comes from God. David says here that God gives riches and honor. He also writes that God is all powerful and mighty. He gives us the strength and the power to withstand what life brings to us.

If we dislike having to do laundry, we should think of those who do not have warm clothing. If we dislike having to straighten up and clean our homes, we should remember and pray for those who are homeless. If our children upset us, we should remember those who have lost children and ask God to comfort them. If we have difficulties about our jobs, we should remember those parents who can’t put food on the table for their families. We should always give thanks for our families, our homes, and for the warm clothing we have and the means to own them.

Everything we have, all we are and ever will be come from God and his watch care over us. We learn to praise Him as He cares for us during the times we walk through the valleys of our lives. God gives us the strength we need to get through the toughest circumstances of our lives.