Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Celebrate Today

I have made a choice that this year will be a year of celebration! Psalm 149:1 says,

"Sing to the Lord a new song..."

After reading that, I thought to myself, "What new song of praise am I singing to the Lord?"

So, in an effort to be more grateful to the Lord for the new things He is doing in my life, I have made a choice to find one new thing everyday to praise God for whether it be small or big. Satan steals our joy from day to day by getting us to focus on what we don't have...today. But if we were to look closer, I believe we could find treasures to celebrate today!

Some verses in the Bible we have all read or heard recited so many times that we allow them to lose their effect upon our hearts. I realized this today as I was reading Psalm 118:24:

"This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."

I decided not to roll by that verse that I memorized years ago in my youth group, but to stop and meditate on what that verse means for me today. First, God has blessed me with this day...so I must thank Him for it. I am exactly where I am, doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing because this is the day He has made for me. He is Sovereign. The sooner you and I realize that, the better off we'll be!

We are commanded to rejoice! Rejoicing is a verb--it's something you do. Therefore, you and I have to make the choice not to complain, which is the opposite of rejoicing! Then we are commanded to be glad in it. What is the "it" we are to be glad about? The "it" refers to this day--but not just any day, but the day that the Lord has made. We can rejoice and be glad in today knowing that God is in control!

Now, in saying this, I know there are things about today that we are all unhappy about. God did not tell us to rejoice in that...He said to rejoice in the day He has made. Notice the rejoicing has nothing to do with us...but with Him. He is our joy! With the rising of each new day, we can be glad because it reassures us that He is still in control, He is still on the throne!

So, what about you? What are you rejoicing for today? What are you glad about today? How will you celebrate today?

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