Joy and Shouting

Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous;

And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

Psalm 32:11 (NKJV)

I have done a lot of shouting in my lifetime. I was a cheerleader during some of my school days. Shouting in that position was expected. However, my husband can testify that there have been other times I have shouted. (Might I add, I’m not proud of those times!)

Do you ever shout? Well, did you know that God commands us to shout? Our verse for today is only one of many times that God says, "Shout for joy!” And so, I introduce you to our couple of the day, Joy and Shouting. When exuberant joy in the Lord is experienced, a believer naturally wants to shout praises to God.

After God delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, He gave the Israelites specific instructions on how He was to be worshiped. A redeemed people long to worship God. Leviticus 9 describes the events that took place the first time Aaron and his sons led the people of Israel in worship. After sacrifices were made, fire came out of the Presence of the Lord and consumed the offerings, showing that God was pleased. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown (Leviticus 9:24).

When is the last time you saw God work in a mighty way, and you could not stifle a shout? Perhaps the numbers of times we have shouted praise to God is indicative of our joy factor!

Ok, believer, will you join me? Will you warm up those pipes and shout for joy to the Lord for the great things He has done? It would be good for each of us to practice now, for one day in heaven we will all be shouting together: Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude…shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!” (Revelation 19:6-7).

Lord, fill us with joy that overflows into shouting Your praise!

Jan Burkhart

The Coming of Jesus

…He is Christ the Lord.

LUKE 2:11

Lord Jesus, on this Christmas Day we worship You.

·      We worship You as Immanuel, God with us! You were born of a virgin, having been conceived from the Holy Spirit. This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14).

·      We worship You as Savior! You were given the name Jesus, because you have saved your people from their sins. (Matthew 1:20-23)

·      We worship You as worthy! Mary wrapped You in cloths and placed You in a manger, because there was no room in the inn. (Luke 2:7) A crowded inn. A crowded mind. A crowded day. Lord Jesus, You are worthy of our best. Fill our minds with heartfelt worship!

·      We worship You as Peacemaker! Angels proclaimed, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men… (Luke 2:11,14). You, Jesus, opened heaven’s door. Man, who could not attain peace on his own, is given peace with God through faith in You!

·      We worship You as King! Magi followed a star, searching for the king of the Jews. Upon coming to You, they bowed and worshiped. (Matthew 2) You, Jesus, are the King of kings! You reign now and forever!

·      We worship You as the One who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8). You have come to bring salvation. You are coming again to bring justice and deliverance. Angels will again proclaim Your coming. All nations of the earth will see You come on the clouds, with power and great glory. (1 Thessalonians 4:16, Matthew 24:30)

·      We worship You as LORD. At Your name every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that You, Jesus Christ, are Lord! (Philippians 2:10-11) 

Lord Jesus, on this Christmas Day, we acknowledge that You alone are worthy of worship. Like the angels on the night of Your birth, use us to fill our surroundings with praise of You until You come again!

Jan Burkhart

Pondering Jesus’ Birth

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only,

who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1:14

Lord Jesus, as I ponder Your birth, I wonder:

• ·      When did You, who had been with the Father from eternity past, plan the events of your birth?
• ·      When did You, for whom and by whom all things were created, create the star that led the magi to worship You?
• ·      Upon Your birth did Your furry creation recognize You as their Creator? Was there a lamb in the shelter that night to welcome You, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world? (John 1:29)
• ·      When did the angels learn of their role in announcing Your birth? How long did they anxiously await the moment they could fill the heavens with praise of You, the Most High?
• ·      When did the shepherds’ fear turn to excitement? When did their excitement turn to humble, heartfelt worship? Were their lives forever changed after that night?
• ·      After the shepherds spread the good news of Your birth and the supernatural events surrounding it, how many people from Bethlehem came to behold You and worship You?

My questions turn to praise:

At a planned point in time, You, the Lord of all, set aside Your glory. You humbled Yourself and became the Son of Man. You, the Creator, became the created. You were born of flesh that we might be born of the Spirit. You put on flesh that we might put on holiness. You, the Light, entered the world of darkness, revealing clearly the way to God. You, the Lamb of God, laid down Your life and opened heaven’s door for all who believe in You. Your birth changed the world! Your birth changed me forever!

O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!

I bow in honor, adoration and gratitude before You, Most High. You, Jesus, truly are the greatest gift ever given!

Jan Burkhart

Amazed by God … Swimming with the Orcas

 You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge, made us lords of sheep and cattle, even animals out in the wild, birds flying and fish swimming, whale singing in the ocean deeps.

Psalm 8:6-8 MSG

Psalm 8 is my go-to psalm. When I consider creation, I frankly am amazed that our God, full of majesty and glory, is mindful of little old me. Why, He even has crowned me—you too—with glory and honor (8:5). Oh my! But then, we were created in His image (Genesis 1:27). Putting us in charge of His creation was a natural next step (Genesis 1:28). 

Spying an Orca in Howe Sound in British Columbia was a real treat. Apparently the salmon and other orca food had been overfished in the past, plus nearby mines had contaminated the waters. With better control, these great beauties are beginning to return. 

The Orca is the largest member of the dolphin family. Their black and white coloring is distinctive—mostly black, white underbelly, white eye patch, white saddle patch near the dorsal fin. They are intelligent, have large brains, and can adapt to challenges. As one group of fishermen tells, the Orcas were stealing their catch right off their lines. They tried to trick them by putting their boats miles apart, using dummy lines, and hauling in their fish more frequently. Within an hour the Orcas had split up into two groups.    

Unfortunately the Orcas have gotten a bad rap from their other name—Killer Whales. They really are very docile and non-aggressive, although accidents have happened. Perhaps there was a mistranslation years ago of the Spanish for “whale killer”,as they hunt their prey well. They are social, traveling in family groups, each with a distinctive dialect of clicks, whistles, and pulsed calls.

What fascinates you and I is their tail slapping and their porpoising—leaping out of water. Once spotted through binoculars, a great cry went up. The nephews rushed to get life preservers on their kiddos and load everyone into their boat for acloser look at the mom and three babies. Lots of excitementfrom the little ones on their return.

From our vantage point at the rail of our ferry the previous day, we had seen an entire pod jumping. What a thrill!

God, how can it be that six tons of blubber gracefully leap out of the water, in concert? How can a family “sing” to each other?Surely they are in praise of Your greatness. I am absolutely amazed with You.   

Nancy P

Amazed by God … Sunning with the Sea Lions

Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who live in them.

Isaiah 42:10 MSG

We could hear them from what seemed like miles away. We had spent a glorious day at Crater Lake, OR. Now that’s a phenomenon of God for sure. When a volcano erupted eons ago, not only did the mountain blow its top. It also imploded as lava poured out down below, forming a huge crater. Believe me, the water is the most intense blue I have ever seen. As Indian legend says, “The mountain bluebird was gray before dipping into the waters.” But I digress.

The scenic drive from Crater Lake to the Oregon Coast led us along narrow winding roads bordered by rising rock walls, under a lush canopy of green. Finally we were at the Pacific. The sea cliffs fell sharply to the ocean below. Our ears were assaulted by a loud barking cacophony. It took us some driving along the coast to get to the perfect vantage point to view, up close, the colony of sea lions making the racket.

What strange mammals these sea lions are. Their bodies are streamlined for swimming at speeds up to twenty-five miles per hour. On land they sidle along like inchworms, their long fore-flippers alternating with the rear. They lie right next to each other like best friends, but just try to take over their spot on the rocks. You’ll be back in the water in a flash. They seem to spend all day long doing nothing but sunning themselves.

And what’s the matter with that? God created them to relax and enjoy the hot sun. Just maybe that loud bark was their way of praising Him for a good job done. Besides, adjacent to their sunning rock lies Cobble Beach, composed of round black basalt rock. As the waves roll onto the beach, one can hear an applause-like sound. Hmmm—is the water, are the rocks, also praising God?

Makes me want to spend a little more time sunning in the presence of the Lord. If we all sang His praise from the ends of the earth, think what a sound that would make.  

Nancy P