Tag: Praise the Lord

Called to Worship

Psalm 134 & 146-150

Psalm 150 2 NIV sgl

What’s your favorite song? Not the one that makes you sound sophisticated to your friends or the one that is just a current fling, but the one that is your favorite. What’s the song that makes you wanna roll down your windows and sing out as you drive along? (It’s hard to narrow down, I know. There are many “emo” bands from the mid-‘00s that are contenders for me.) For many of you, it’s probably a song that is ‘happier”: they probably have upbeat lyrics, a fun melody, a catchy tune. (For you music nerds, probably a major key, rather than minor key.) The reason those kinds of songs may be your favorite is because music reaches into a deep part of what makes us human; joyful songs uplift our souls.
Joyful songs uplifting humans has been true across time. As we have been reading the psalms, we are of course reading the songbook(s) of the Jewish people. These were not just words on the page, but were a collection of songs that the people would sing. These songs, these Psalms we are reading today are songs of JOY, songs of SHOUTING, SONGS OF JUBILATION! Each one of them are the happy, joyful, exuberant songs that, were they sung today, would make you want to tilt your head back and let loose a “joyful noise” with everyone around you. I wish we could hear exactly as they sounded when they were sung as the people worshipped in the temple or on their way up to the temple mount.
The first and last psalms (134, 150) are short, but even the longest psalm (147) is written in a nearly breathless ecstasy. They are read quickly, at a pace that rushes along. This is because in all of them, there is a repetition of phrases. Search all the Psalms together in NASB on Bible Gateway. The effect of the repetition is quite striking and intentional by the author. In our minds, we may think that the author should have used different word or phrases to be interesting. Remember, when something is repeated, that is something the author wants us to remember. These songs are making use of something akin to a “chorus”. They wanted people to easily remember the song as they walked up the mount and sang.
Moreover, these psalms show us that the cacophonous world we inhabit is not just a torrent of noises, “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Instead, Psalm 150 invites the praise of the instruments of the people. Trumpet and lyre and timbrel and cymbal, (and drums and guitar and piano and voice); ALL are called to give glory to God our maker and creator. Even more is the section of Psalm 148:7-12 where the psalmist asks the inhabitants of the earth to praise the Lord. But what is called to praise? Sea monsters, hail, and fruit trees, along with mountains and cattle. The list shows us that it is more than humans that are called to worship; we are to be the forefront of creation, but creation will praise its creator, and we have a choice to make in who or what we praise!
Today is Sunday. Today, above all days, is the day when we think about God who made us, who raised his Son from the dead, and who rules over us all. Find the song that allows you to worship him, crank it up in your headphones, in your speakers, in your car, and sing to the glory of the Lord. (To get “Jesus turnt” try : Amazing Grace by Phil Wickam, Glorious Day by Passion, or Church Clap by KB.)
Let everything that has breath, praise the Lord!
Praise the LORD!
Jake Ballard
Tomorrow’s Bible reading will be 1 Kings 9 and 2 Chronicles 8 as we continue on our 2020 Chronological Bible Reading Plan

Few Words

Psalm 116 – 118

psalms-116-1-2.jpg

Sunday, January 15

Every Tuesday that school meets, I get the opportunity to musically accompany a student who leads a song for our school’s Fellowship of Christian Students.  This takes some minor coordination, as a student sends me an email at some point during the week to make sure that I am familiar with the song he/she wants to sing, and he/she might arrange a quick practice if need be.  There is really nothing special about these emails.  More times than not, all the information is in the subject line, and there is no actual message.  One such email came not long ago:

 

Subject: Singing good good father on Tuesday

Message:<none>

At first glance this is far from spectacular.  In fact, it is an English teacher’s nightmare.  Lack of punctuation, capitalization, or salutation, yet this may have been the most powerful prose that has ever been written by one of my students.  These six words have a concealed connotation that are revealed with a reflection on the text.

 

To say it mildly, this school year had been a bumpy one for the sender of this email.  Along with the many other complications that come from being in middle school, this student had faced many a giant outside the school walls.  Two months prior, she had suddenly lost a very close grandmother to an unexpected illness.  Then, it was only a month later when her grandfather decided he could no longer deal with the tremendous vacancy left by his wife; he took his own life.  This left the student floundering, dealing with depression and her own darkening desires, all while trying to do drama-and-hormone-filled middle school as a typical preteen.

 

I was moved, because out of all the songs she could have picked….this one.  Not a song asking God to give her comfort.  Not a song asking God to give her strength.  Not a song asking God to give her peace, joy, lift the burden, make it go away, overcome, change, deliver, or go before her.  Not a song asking God to give her anything she did not already have.  Only the reflection upon a few simple words about who he is, and his undeniable, unfaltering, unconcealed relationship with us, that will, in turn, bring all of those things and more.

 

“You’re a Good, Good Father, it’s who You are

And I’m loved by You, it’s who I am”

“You are perfect in all of your ways to us”

 

In today’s reading we experience an equally brief but equally powerful message.  Psalm 117 is the shortest chapter of the Bible.  Depending upon your translation, it is simply twenty words or so.

Upon glancing over it, you have undoubtedly read similar words in other Psalms, and it would be easy to breeze by and never notice its power-packed message:

 

“Praise the Lord, all you nations,

Praise Him, all you people of the earth.

For his unfailing love for us is powerful

The Lord’s faithfulness endures forever.

Praise the Lord!”

 

These words were written well before the act of Jesus Christ became our propitiation, yet we are promised partakers in his love and faithfulness.  A love and faithfulness that has been and is working for ALL (not Israel, or even Christians)  but ALL people of ALL nations at ALL times.  Only reflecting upon a few words dramatically affects the reading of this passage. These words, which possibly  sound repetitive, general, or generic after reading through the Psalms, are chosen specifically to show that He is and has been working specifically, powerfully, and faithfully in your life much longer than we could have ever expected or known.

-Aaron Winner

“You’re a Good, Good Father”, “Praise the Lord”

(Photo credit: https://dailyverses.net/psalms/116/1-2/kjv)