Thankful, Day Sixty

Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!

Serve the Lord with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.

Know that the Lord, He is God;

It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;

We are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

For the Lord is good;

His mercy is everlasting,

And His truth endures to all generations.

Psalm 100, NKJV

Come, he says. Come before the the Lord. Come into His presence. Come with singing.

But what do you do when you don't feel like coming before the Lord? What do you do when you are ashamed or afraid or apprehensive? What if God sees too much, or knows to much? What if this is the time when God finally looks down and says, "I don't want you near me, you wretched imbecile! Away with you!" And with a wave of His hand simply erases you from existence. Has anyone else ever felt that way when it was time to approach God, or is it just me?

And yet still he says, "Come."

I think of Adam and Eve, hiding behind the leaves of the fig tree, ashamed of their own nakedness as God came walking to talk with them in the garden. And knowing what they had done, God called out to them, "Where are you?" He wanted to be with them.

Jesus called all those flawed disciples, repeatedly, knowing what they were like, knowing how they were going to be, even Judas, and still He said, "Come, follow me."

Jesus said, "Come unto me, all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest."

Jesus said, "Come to me and drink, and out of your belly will flow rivers of living water."

Jesus invites us all to come to Him.

And so I do. The Bible says that He is my High Priest who sympathizes with me in weakness, and that I can boldly come to Him. So I come. The Bible says that He is a living stone, the cornerstone and the capstone of my faith, and that I should come to him as a living stone and offer myself to Him. So I come.

Thank you Lord that you do not forsake your own, nor abandon them, nor disown them, nor cast them away from you, when they keep coming to you in faith. Lord, I come.

Thank you Lord that you are constantly and continually available to the tempted and the tried, to the weak and the needy, to the poor and imprisoned, to the sick and the tired, and that you hold out your arms to them. Lord, I come.

Thank you Lord that are my shelter, my shield, my buckler, my strong tower, my rock of safety and my defense, and that I can run to you and be saved. Lord, I come.

And I will come with my song.