Do you ever wonder if God can really bring us joy?
I was reading Psalm 145 and saw that David gives us keys to how we might grow in our joy. He chooses always to speak out God’s greatness. I will exalt you, my God, O King, and reflect on his loving character: The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and abounding in loving-kindness. The Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works (the entirety of things created). All your works shall give thanks to you and praise you, O Lord. (Psalm 145: 8-10 AMP)
Personally, I can get quite pulled down by negativity. We all do, but David chooses to drink in the Lord’s love and compassionate help. He says, I will meditate on your wonderful works. He is focussing upon God’s character and ways and asserting that he will bless God every day. Do we have similarly grateful hearts? I easily take God for granted but when I respond in gratitude, worship wells up naturally from my heart.
As I continued reading the Psalm, I saw how David celebrates God’s love of helping us. Recently I was travelling by train which can be tricky because I can’t see the screens or hear announcements. I thought, things will probably go wrong. I was thinking negatively! Well, they did go wrong, as the train missed out my stop. Annoyed, I jumped off at the next stop and prayed the Lord would help me find the right train back. A lovely couple assisted me and then to my surprise, a friend was driving past the station just as I came out and offered me a lift home! I could easily have forgotten that God was behind it all, but as I considered how he had ‘opened his hand to help me’ thankfulness and joy filled me.
I found this Psalm also speaks of the communal impact of our worship. David says that when others extol God, his own heart is inspired. It’s awesome to take part in worship where our praises mingle with thousands of others. Similarly, when we worship together in small groups. Over Easter, Marilyn and I led a Maundy Thursday service in our home. There were only 12 of us, but the sense of the Lord’s presence as we worshipped was so special. I so long to have a heart that will choose to focus on him every day, even on those occasions when life is hard or circumstances frustrating. Worship changes the atmosphere and breaks the enemy’s strategies to rob and pull us down. As the Psalmist declares: I will sing to the Lord all my life. I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to him as I rejoice in the Lord. Praise the Lord O my soul. (Psalm 104: 13-15)
