joyful noise that I must make

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

For the LORD is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

Psalm 95:2-3

Pure thoughts of sheer praise emanate from the soul that is truly loving and worshiping the God Who saves! And this morning, my soul, in thanksgiving, wishes to join in singing this ancient song hoping to worship with that kind of praise. It is good to make some JOYFUL noise! And I will raise that noise even now.

God is great! He is greater than the false gods of this world. He is greater than my own disappointed dreams that have let me down. He is greater than all that I can ever imagine. I know this because He is carrying me in my weakness. I know this because He has restored my sense of wonder at life and the amazing world He has created around me. This restoration has occurred even as I thought this world was reduced to ashes. He has pulled me close to Him when I thought I was alone. He gave my weary soul rest in Jesus, as He promised, when I took on His easy yoke. He lightened the burden I did not want to bear, even as He placed the load upon my shoulders. O how great is our God! I will sing with joy and a grateful heart.

Lord,

Your presence has never been far from me. With Your Holy Spirit right here, I confess that although I thought You were far off, You were not. My own selfish thinking created a false sense of distance. And now coming into an awareness of just how close You really are, my soul is not just confessional, but extremely thankful! You are such a good, good God, even when I have been a fool! Jesus is a Friend closer than a brother. And You have indeed loved me more intensely than any earthly lover ever could. The joy of that realization burns the fog off my perspective even as You burn the morning fog outside my window as I am praying this prayer! Joy is worth the difficulty, my impatient waiting and myopic wanting, the darkness that has pushed me stumbling backwards right into You. This has happened as surely as the sunrise melts away the white fog to reveal a path that You refresh with the morning dew upon the short-lived grass which is my life. And though my days are as grass, You have refreshed me to verdant life at Your touch. In Your presence I sing and I celebrate with a joyful noise!

Amen