We continue to "sing" with the psalms this week, exploring how people wrote poetry and songs during their wilderness wanderings. It is amazing how many of the songs this week are written with such joy in the Lord even in the midst of troubles.
Scripture: Psalm 100
Focus: Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. ~Psalm 100:4
Song Lyrics: Written by Leona Bruce Von Brethorst in 1976. Take this link to listen to this He has made Me Glad performed by the Integrity Singers of Maranatha Music.
I will enter His gates
with thanksgiving in my heart;
I will enter His courts with praise!
I will say this is the day that the Lord has made;
I will rejoice for He has made me glad!
He has made me glad! He has made me glad!
I will rejoice for He has made me glad! (2x)
Commentary: Like many of our psalms this week, Psalm 100 is a song of Thanksgiving. Its scope is universal in its witness and its joyful mood.
Throughout Christian history, psalm 100 has been employed to summon the community to worship together in robust praise. Worship of God shapes the community’s identity. Because God has formed us, we belong to God and sing in praise!
This joyous song was written by Leona Bruce Von Brethorst whose her husband had left her when she had 2 children under the age of 4. After working odd jobs so she and her children could have food to eat, she became a worship leader in her church. She battled depression but after her children left, it worsened. She wrote this song one day after reading Psalm 100, realizing that an inner sense of thanksgiving was the key to knowing the joy of the Lord, even when she was wandering in the “wilderness” of her life.
Reflection: What do you give thanks for? How do you experience the joy of the Lord in the midst of struggle?
Breath Prayer for the Day:
Breathing in … God of Joy
Breathing out … You have made me glad!
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