Skip to main content

Sing For Joy To God! Praise Him For All He Has Done!



"Sing for joy to God our strength! I am the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt."
Psalm 81:1a, 10a (NIV1984)

During Lent we look forward to the coming of Easter Sunday, the day that we are filled with overwhelming joy and celebration of Jesus' resurrection from the dead. This is our great reason to sing for joy to God. This is why we are called to sing for joy in so many different ways. However, Jesus' resurrection from the dead is not our only reason for singing praise to God!

In our passage today (Psalm 81), the psalmist not only tells us that it is a decree for Israel and an ordinance of God that the people sing for joy to God, but he also lists out many reasons for the people of Israel to praise God. God moved the burdens of the people and set their hands free from the work of slavery in Egypt. He set them free from Egypt and provided for all of their needs. He heard their calls of distress and answered them when they were wandering in the desert. These are only just a few of the reasons that the people of Israel had to motivate themselves to sing for joy to God their strength!

We may have never experienced slavery in our own lives, but we recognize that many people still do today. We may have never had a horrible burden of physical labor forced upon us in our own lifetimes, but we know that this is the plight of many people even today. We may have never experienced true starvation and thirst in our lives, but we understand that people die of these evils daily. Although we may not have experienced the evils of slavery, forced labor, and starvation and thirst, we have all experienced hardships and the results of sin, evil, and death in the world.

No matter what hardships we have experienced in life as followers of Jesus Christ, we know that God has everything in control and that he has the power to release us from our troubles. He has done so in the past and continues to do so today for those who love him and listen to him. Those are the occasions when we experience the overwhelming need to sing for joy to God who is our strength just as the Israelites did thousands of years ago. Sing for joy to God who is your strength today. Praise him for all he has done in your life and also for all he has done for his people throughout history!

 Prayer:
God of my strength, I sing for joy and praise you for your mighty works. I have had many falls in my life and you have been there to pick me up each and every time. Not only that, but you willingly died in my place and have forgiven me of all of my sins. You are my God and you are my strength. Strengthen me to always rely on you throughout my life and give me the boldness to express my gratitude to others. Amen!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

God Is Our Only Reliable Source of Truth, Justice, & Love!

“For the word of the L ORD is right and true; he is faithful in all he does.  The L ORD loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love.”  - Psalm 33:4-5 (NIV) Have you noticed how it seems that our world is full of people that can never seem to tell it to you straight?  We live in a world full of liars, cheaters, two-faced people, injustice, and evil.  Does anyone tell the truth anymore?  Does anyone care about the lack of justice around the world?  Who can you rely on anymore in this messed up world?   The writer of this psalm tells us that, “the word of the L ORD is right and true.”  How refreshing it is to know that we still have one who is full of the truth and who speaks what is right!  God’s words never fail and he speaks only the truth.  We never have to worry about whether or not God’s word is reliable because we know that he only speaks the truth. The psalmist continues and tells us that God is ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Our Source For Truth

The sum of your word is truth; and every one of your righteous ordinances endures forever. - Psalm 119:160 (NRSV) In today's world, we are used to lies and falsehoods on a daily basis. We hear those on the radio, TV, and even in our own correspondences each day! Even close friends and family members do not tell the truth one hundred percent of the time! How sad is that? Even though others may fail, we have a God whose word is truth and whose word lasts forever! Isn't it good to know that we have a God whose word never contains a falsehood? The full sum of God's word is truth. That means that there is nothing in any part of his word that is false. God's Word, the Bible, is God's number one way of communicating his thoughts to us. It is his way of showing his will and his truth! It is so good to know that we do have a reliable and unwavering source for truth in a day and age when truth is defined on an individual basis. Praise God for his Word and d...
Post a Comment
Read more

Be Generous and Be Blessed: An Advent Attitude

“A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor.”  - Proverbs 22:9 (NIV1984) As we near the season of Advent, we have already heard the calls of selfishness and greed to indulge in Black Friday sales and Cyber Monday sales in an annual attempt to get that great deal or save a few dollars here and there. We will also begin to hear the opposite call from many churches and non-profit organizations. We will hear the call for generosity and an attitude of giving to those who are living much more difficult lives than ourselves. In this proverb, we are told that a person is blessed for their generosity. I believe that we can all testify to the notion that our economic woes, the number of people living in poverty and on food stamps, and the general attitude of selfishness that pervades our culture are directly related to a lack of generosity and the prevalence of greed. Today, on the Family Life Network radio station , they ran their daily cont...
Post a Comment
Read more