Shout For Joy!

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth,  
burst into jubilant song with music;
make music to the Lord with the harp,
    with the harp and the sound of singing,
with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn—
    shout for joy before the Lord, the King.

Psalm 98:4-6 NIV

We had a few visitors at Worship this Sunday. It was a joyful celebration which included an affirmation of her baptism by one of our beloved sisters in Christ. One of our visitors mentioned, with tongue in cheek, that we could not possibly be Lutherans. After all, Lutherans do not sway to the music nor do they tap their feet. And, yes, we were singing hymns from a Lutheran hymnal. Traditional hymns do not have to be somber all of the time. Traditional hymns can be joyfully played and sung.  After all, we do have much to celebrate!

When I think of joyful music, I usually think of David joyfully dancing through the streets as the people celebrated the return of the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem. David was definitely excited. We gather together each Sunday to worship and celebrate the awesome things that God has done for us. We who were not His people are now His beloved children.

By the blood of Christ shed on the cross for us, we have been reconciled to God our Father and our Lord, Jesus the Christ. Our sins are forgiven and we have been made whole in Christ. That's should be enough to make us want to sing joyfully and even tap our toes before the Lord!

Shout for joy before the Lord, our King!

God's Peace - Pr. J