Joyful Songs
"Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Acknowledge that Yahweh is God. He made us, we are His--His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For Yahweh is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations."
-Psalm 100 (HCSB)
The problem with the way we see the goodness of God, and the word joy, is that we equate joy with euphoric feeling. Sure one word for joy is euphoria, but it also is congruent with the choice to love and trust God, even when the circumstance is not favorable. If one's faith is based upon the occasional good feelings and circumstances brought about by trusting God, then it will be crushed when their whole world is affected by negative things. Is God only in the favorable situations, or can He be found when all hope seems lost? Let me answer that question for you: God can be found no matter what. Good, bad, favorable, unfavorable etc. He is God and He is greater than all things. Sometimes singing joyful songs involves praising God through horrible circumstances, while other times it means praising Him when the emotional weather is good.
Whatever the situation, choose to praise God, even if all you can get out is a thought in your mind. Life can be an emotional minefield. Those who speak of things being all butterflies and flowers are either delusional or have come out on the other side of their own personal minefield and have learned to see God in all of life. Make this your prayer today to see God in the good, bad and ugly of life. Choosing to praise and worship Him in every aspect of life will mature you spiritually and strengthen your faith to believe God even more.
Prayer
God, You have made us and You know us intimately. We choose to praise You in the midst of our circumstances, for You are the only one who is worthy of praise. Be magnified and glorified in our lives today. In Jesus' name, amen.
