Rejoice always!

When was the last time you rejoiced at something? I am not talking about laughing, but truly rejoicing, celebrating, being joyful about something or someone? I think our lives are filled with mundane tasks that often seem irrelevant and we don’t even seem to find joy in those. We take many things for granted. We think to ourselves that every day is the same and that we can go about our days as we please forgetting that we are not our own. The psalmist says, “teach us to number our days, that we might gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12), oh how do we need this prayer! This prayer was uttered precisely because the psalmist recognized the frailty of our lives and the uncertainty of tomorrow. The bible calls us Christians to be joyful, to rejoice, to exult, to sing; actions that are fit for those that have been redeemed by the King, fit for those that are righteous. Such attitudes show our worship to our God. Rejoice, sing for joy, and others are commands calling those who fear the Lord to obey.

In the book of Revelation, we are told that death shall be no more, that God will wipe away every tear from the eyes of his people, that there won’t be mourning or pain or crying (Revelation 21:4). I believe being joyful, rejoicing, shouting for joy is a command that prepares us for how we will be in the new heaven! God in His kindness wants us to be ready for heaven, ready for Him and part of that involves rejoicing in Him. I find this absolutely wonderful and it feels me with joy as I think about it. In general, when we are happy about something, when we celebrate something or someone, we are not worried, we are in a place that makes others want to be in ours. Celebrations are usually cause for bringing people together, it is never individualistic. We love to celebrate with others, to tell of the wonders of what we are celebrating to our friends and neighbours. It is glorious to be among people that are rejoicing, joyful and full of life. It almost has a contaminating effect on you, and it is beautiful. In the same way, we are called to rejoice in the Lord, to sing for joy to the Lord, to bow down and worship him, to exult in him, etc. (see Psalms 95-98). Not only is this call a command to worship which allows us to focus our attention on the One who deserves our worship, our time, our happiness, our everything, but it is also a way for us to be blessed. We are blessed as we get into the presence of the Lord, as we think and celebrate Him for all that He is, we are blessed because we are not in a sad place when we sing for joy to the Lord, the effect is always instantaneous when we get to praise Him. Moreover, worshipping in this manner allows us to grow more in love for Him. It is a good remedy for ungratefulness, for selfishness and pride. Singing for joy to the Lord and exulting Him humbles us because we see ourselves as small and insignificant when we are in his presence. We are able to recount the Lord’s goodness, His faithfulness, His salvation, His rescue, His provision, His might, His power, His grandeur and that can only put us in our rightful place which is at His feet. I love that the Lord knew that a simple act like singing would realign us, make us focus on what is important rather than focusing on what we cannot control. The Lord knew the enemy would strive to keep us focused on ourselves, focused on our world, our problems and the many things that we are powerless to do anything about but God in his loving kindness had a better plan. Hallelujah!

So, when you are overwhelmed with your problems, when your life feels out of place, when you feel out of place, when things don’t go your way, when you are simply sad, remember to rejoice in the Lord. It is not a difficult task to do and it is not a task that you have to feel to do. You can always start by recounting what the Lord has done in your life, the fact that you are alive, and breathing is reason enough to rejoice in Him and exult Him. Moreover, you can always pick up a worship song that exalts the name of God and I guarantee you will feel much better afterward. If you are unable to sing because sadness has overwhelmed you, then read aloud passages in the bible that extol the Lord like Psalms 95-99. Finally, if you are blessed musically, if you can play an instrument, use it as you worship the Lord, worship Him with the gifts He has given you. It is beautiful to give back to God what He has given you. Again, I repeat, it is not hard to worship the Lord, you simply need to look around you, look at His marvelous creation which itself worships Him so why would it be a daunting task for us humans? Let’s honour God in that simple yet powerful act of worshipping in songs.