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From
the March, 2000 edition of The Doulos monthly
newsletter
by
Jim Petelin
“Shout
for joy to the Lord, all the earth.” (Psalm
100:1)
Did
you hear that command?
S-H-O-U-T!!!! for joy to
the Lord!
Who? Everyone.
You, me, family, friends, coworkers, classmates, enemies.
Everyone.
How? SHOUT.
With what?
JOY. Have
you shouted with joy to the Lord, lately?
Have you shouted with passionate praise to the God of the universe –
who created you and me?
Do you think the psalmist is talking about “shouting” silently, by
yourself, in the stillness of the night ?
I don’t.
I think he wants us to shout at a decibel level that can be heard by
quite a few people.
By the way, while you’re shouting, worship God and sing too!
“Worship
the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.” (Psalm
100:2)
Let’s
see…shout out loud….sing out loud…sounds like behavior that might turn a
few heads. And
why not? Do
you realize that God, Himself, takes such great delight in you and I that He
actually breaks out in song?!?!
Could God actually get that excited over you and me?
He does.
“The
Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight
in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you
with singing.”
(Zephaniah
3:17)
Isn’t
that incredible!
It makes my heart soar to greater heights.
It makes me feel exceptionally humble.
It makes me want to S-H-O-U-T
for J-O-Y! It
makes me want to worship the Lord with gladness and sing joyful songs!
If
that doesn’t get you excited, try to remember your past…what you were like
before Jesus entered your life…and how He saved you.
“Remember
the height from which you have fallen!
Repent and do the things you did at first…” (Revelation
2:5a)
Think
about your “rescue” from sin and death.
Think about new life in Christ.
Think about how clean you are because of Jesus…
“For
He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom
of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sin”. (Colossians
1:13-14)
“S
H O U T for
joy, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before Him with joyful
songs.” (Psalm
100:1-2)
In
Christ,
Jim
Petelin
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