Serve the LORD with gladness,
Come before His presence with thanksgiving.
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
I don't know how you feel about God, but I get the impression that many times we fall into the trap of thinking that the Almighty is someone to be feared and avoided at all cost, for if we get to close, we are going fry like crispy critters, that the Eternal Sovereign is a vindictive, malevolent overlord waiting for his subjects to mess up so that he can blot us out, removing us completely from existence. But God is not someone to be avoided, He is someone to be embraced. We should never run nor hide from the presence of God, but rather seek Him out and enjoy Him. That's what He wants from us, because that's what He wants to do with us.
This beautiful Psalm is all about reveling in the presence of God. It's about serving Him gladly and coming before Him in song. He doesn't want us crawling on our bellies to grovel at the lowly foot of His throne, He wants us dancing and rejoicing before Him, happy to be with Him, happy to know Him, happy to belong to Him. He wants us praising and worshiping, not crying and complaining and demeaning ourselves.
I mean, there is a place for humility. There is a time for lowliness, for meekness, for decreasing that He might increase. But there is also a time and place for celebration with Him. After all, when one soul gets saved, all of heaven rejoices. In heaven if one word of praise is uttered, it stirs an eruption of adoration from everything that has breath. So let us learn to celebrate the Lord, to worship Him, to give him loud adoration, energetic adulation. Let us open our mouths and our hearts in glorious exaltation of the God who is above all in through all and in us all!
Today I am thankful for the power of forgiveness, for the forgiveness I have received from God and from other, and for the forgiveness I am able to offer because of the love that God has put in my own heart.
I am thankful for the wonder of reconciliation, when God heals broken hearts, binding up their wounds, and restores relationships on earth.
I am thankful for the provision of peace that God has made to all who call upon Him, for He said if we pray, His peace that passes all understanding will guard our hearts and minds.
What are you thankful for today?
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