Psalm 100:1-2
A psalm. For giving grateful praise.
1 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
What’s the last time you shouted for joy? What was the occasion?
Reflect
From “Insight for Today” a daily devotional by Pastor Church Swindoll
Shout joyfully to the LORD (100:1). This is quite a beginning! The Hebrew gets straight to the point. In fact, the term “joyfully” doesn’t appear in the Hebrew. Literally rendered, it’s “Shout to the Lord!” The word “shout” comes from a Hebrew word meaning “to raise a noise, to give a blast (as on a trumpet).” The composer calls for the kind of shouting that erupts from a person so full of joy he can’t contain his emotions, the kind of uninhibited whooping you hear from fans at a football game. He says, in effect, “Shout in joyful approval of God!”…
Serve the LORD with gladness (100:2). A healthy sign of the grateful life is serving. Few decisions are more effective in easing the daily grind of ingratitude than serving others. In doing God’s work, we serve Him, not the local church, not the superintendent of some department, not the pastor or some board. We serve the Lord. It is He we worship and for Him we labor—not people! And please observe that the motivation is neither grudging nor guilt-ridden; we are urged to serve “with gladness.” The Hebrew term for this phrase was used to describe pleasant things that gave happiness.
Now let’s get real for a moment. You don’t always feel like serving. Yet waiting until you feel grateful isn’t a good plan; you’ll never serve! (I write from personal experience.) The psalm doesn’t imply we should serve only when our hearts are filled with joy. On the contrary, we are commanded to serve regardless; gladness will soon follow. In fact, when I start feeling sorry for myself or my attitude takes a cynical turn, I know it’s time to serve someone who’s in worse shape. It’s not long before gladness pushes negativity out of my heart…
To read the rest of Pastor Swindoll’s devotional, go to https://www.insight.org/resources/daily-devotional/individual/choose-joy
Respond
In hard times, we may not feel particularly joyful. God doesn’t call on us to fake it and act like everything is fine. There is a time and place for repentance and lament. Yet, we can focus on the blessings we’ve been given and find joy in those. We can serve others, and find joy in making a difference in someone else’s life. How can you worship the Lord with gladness today? With whom can you share some of your blessings?