Roar, Clap, Sing!

"Let the sea and everything in it roar God’s praise! Let the earth and all living things join in. Let the rivers clap their hands in glee! Let the mountains sing out their songs of joy before the LORD." (Psalms 98:7-8)

If you have ever been to the ocean, you have heard the sea roar. If you have ever canoed a river, you have seen the water clap its hands as it rushes over rocks. And if you have ever stood among the trees at the top of a hill as the wind rushes through them, you have heard the mountains sing.

All creation offers praise to their Creator! How can we not join them in shouting, clapping, and singing with joy to the One who made us and sustains us?

As I look around our neighborhood at this time of year, the earth, the sky, the birds, and the animals just seem to burst with praise to God! And I must add my voice to their song!

Psalm 92:1 says, “It is a good and delightful thing to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to Your name, O Most High!” God enjoys our praise and thanks for who He is and for all He has done.

God not only creates us, He stays close to us and watches over us all through our lives. He holds our hands through the hard times and dances with us during the happy times. He knows us and what is best for us, better than we know ourselves. God loves us unconditionally and wants us to live with Him forever, so much so that He offered His son, Jesus, on the cross as payment for the forgiveness of all our wrongdoing and failures. So many reasons to praise and thank Him!

Psalm 150 urges us to praise the Lord! “Praise God in his Temple! Praise His strength in heaven! Praise Him for the mighty things He has done. Praise His supreme greatness. Praise Him with trumpets. Praise Him with harps and lyres. Praise Him with drums and dancing. Praise Him with harps and flutes. Praise Him with cymbals. Praise Him with loud cymbals. Praise the Lord, all living creatures!"

So, join the throng! Sing, clap, roar, shout, dance, drum, toot, play, strum, and clang your praise and thanks to God!

Be encouraged!

©2024 Pamela D. Williams.

Comments welcome at writepam71@gmail.com

Ducking the Shadows

The other day I was sitting in our living room reading a book when suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement on the wall above the fireplace. Instinctively, I ducked my head, thinking a bat had gotten in somehow. Bats are right near the top of my “Worst Fears” list.

However, when I looked up, there was nothing there but the silhouette of the arborvitae growing outside the window reflected on the wall. As I watched, the movement happened again! With relief, I realized it was just the shadow of a bird flying into that tree. Aha! There must be a nest in it!

Our fears are often like those shadows—there is no real substance to them. Uncontrollable things that we worry might happen, don’t. Scary scenarios we imagine never occur. Distressing experiences we pray we never have to go through turn out to be far less painful than we anticipated.

We gain nothing by letting our fears and worries overtake us. In fact, when we dwell unnecessarily on thoughts of an uncertain and unknown future, or constantly question but what if, we lose peace of mind in the present and the enjoyment of living the day full of blessings that we are given.

I know this because I have been there, done that. And I really want to throw that T-shirt away! I don’t want to duck the shadows anymore!

That’s what God wants, too! The angel in Daniel 10:19 says, “God loves you, so don't let anything worry you or frighten you,” while David warns us not to give in to worry or anger as it only leads to trouble. (Psalm 37:8)

While I don’t usually quote from the Apocrypha, I love this one from Sirach 30:28, “Don't worry all the time. Worry never did anybody any good, and it has destroyed many people.”

Instead of living in fear, Matthew 6:34 encourages us to “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”

Be encouraged! It’s time to stop running from shadows and throw out that T-shirt!

©2024 Pamela D. Williams.

Comments welcome at writepam71@gmail.com