OUR DAILY BREAD : MAKE A JOYFUL SHOUT

[cimi]

December 20
Sunday


MAKE A
JOYFUL SHOUT

READ:
Psalm 100
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Make a joyful shout to
the LORD, all you lands!
__Psalm 100:1
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Duke University's basketball fans are known as "cameron Crazies." When Duke plays archrival North Carolina, the Crazies are given these instructions: "This is the game you've been waiting for. No excuses. Give everything you've got. Cameron [Stadium] should never be less than painfully loud tonight." clearly, Duke fans take allegiance seriously.

The songwriter of Psalm 100 took his allegiance to the Lord seriously and wanted others to do the same. "Make a joyful shout to the LORD!" he exclaimed (v.1). His people were to freely express their praise to Him because He was the covenant God of Israel, the God over all other so-called gods. They were called to focus all their energies on Him and His goodness.

God's goodness and grace should motivate us to freely express our love and allegiance to Him with shouts of joy. This may mean that those who are more reserved must push back the boundaries of restraint and learn what it means to be expressive in their praise to God. Those who are so expressive that they miss the beauty of silence may need to learn from those whose style is more reflective.

Worship is a time to focus on our Creator, Redeemer, and Shepherd, and celebrate what He has done. __Marvin Williams
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`````````````Shout to the Lord, all the earth, let us sing`````````````
``````````````Power and majesty, praise to the King;```````````````
`````````````Mountains bow down and the seas will roar`````````````
``````````````At the sound of Your name. __Zschech``````````````
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Our thoughts about God
should lead us to joyful praise.

***************Today's Bible Reading __ Psalm 100***************

1 Make a joyful shout to
the LORD, all you lands!

2 Serve the LORD with
gladness; come before His
presence with singing.

3 Know that the LORD, He is
God; it is He who has made
us, and not we ourselves;
we are His people and the
sheep of His pasture.

4 Enter into His gates with
thanksgiving, and into His
courts with praise. Be
thankful to Him, and bless
His name. 5 For the LORD is
good; His mercy is
everlasting, and His truth
endures to all generations.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

In only five verses, Psalm 100 contains the essentials of worship.
Make joyful shout to the Lord (vv.1-3). This first call to worship
may well have been rendered by a choir outside the temple
precincts. The prime essential for such worship is the knowledge
of God; that is, a recognition that the Lord is God, Creator, and
Shepherd of His people Israel. And this knowledge leads to joyful
praise, gladness, and singing. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving
(vv.4-5). The further essentials of worship are thanksgiving, praise,
prayer, and additional knowledge of God's character. The Lord's
attributes of goodness, love, and faithfulness must be recognized by
worshipers in any time period. __DENNIS FISHER