Jump Start # 1147

Psalms 118:24 “This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

Our verse today reflects two thoughts that the Psalmist had. First, he recognized that the day was a gift from the Lord. The Lord, he said, has made this day. Today is a gift. We might be busy with work or a full schedule of things we must do, but without this day, none of that would matter. We often take each day for granted. We just assume that there will be a tomorrow. Someday there won’t be. The gifts will stop, and this world as we know it will end. The Lord has made today. We need to be thankful .

Secondly, he recognized that the value of rejoicing and being glad. Those are choices. Those are attitudes. It’s ok to smile. It’s ok to be happy. It’s ok to enjoy the day. So often we deal with the other side of our emotions. We talk about being discouraged, depressed, down. We see wars starting up, gas prices are high, this is wrong and that is not right and life becomes a drudgery that we tread through. If we can only make it to the end we think, then it will be alright. Misery, pain and unhappiness seem to be constant companions. They make us complain about everything from the weather, the room temperature, the traffic and length of church services. Woe is me becomes our motto and theme of life.

The Psalmist didn’t agree with that. Rejoice. Be glad. Smile. Enjoy the day. Be happy. It’s ok. God’s not going to be upset with you if you enjoy the day He has made. Happy Christians are contagious. You walk into a church building and are greeted by smiles, hugs and joyful conservations, it makes you want to stick around. The opposite is just as true. You walk in to some places, it’s like walking into a funeral home. Frowns, whispers, and stern looks greet you at the door. The first thing that crosses your mind is that they don’t want me here. I’m not welcome. It doesn’t take much of that for me to decide very quickly, I’ll be somewhere else next time.

Let us rejoice and be glad. What a delightful command. Rejoice is deeper than happiness. Being happy is based upon who you are with and what is going on. It is determined by what is “happening.” Happiness is set by what happens. Joy or rejoicing, is based upon deep relationships with the Lord. This is why Paul in a Roman prison could rejoice. His “happenings” were not the best, but his relationship, love and faith in the Lord was supreme. He could rejoice in the Lord.

This is why a person could be sitting in the dentist’s chair, and be rejoicing. This is why a person can be up to his eyeballs in work, very busy, yet rejoicing in the Lord. Tired and rejoicing—not opposites. Busy and rejoicing—yes. You don’t have to be on a vacation to rejoice. You don’t have to have a day off to rejoice. It’s an inside kind of thing. It’s who you are, it’s what God has done, it’s not based upon the weather or traffic patterns.

Smiling Christians—those are my favorites. They just warm the insides and make you feel good.

Rejoice today. This is the day God has made. It’s ok to do that. It’s ok to feel good on the inside about life. God is good. That’s what matters the most.

Enjoy the day!

Roger