WATCHWORD:
1-4 All together now—applause for God!
Sing songs to the tune of his glory, set glory to the rhythms of his praise.
Say of God, “We’ve never seen anything like him!”
When your enemies see you in action, they slink off like scolded dogs.
The whole earth falls to its knees— it worships you, sings to you,
can’t stop enjoying your name and fame.
5-6 Take a good look at God’s wonders— they’ll take your breath away.
He converted sea to dry land; travelers crossed the river on foot.
Now isn’t that cause for a song?
7-8 Ever sovereign in his high tower, he keeps his eye on the godless nations.
Rebels don’t dare raise a finger against him.
Bless our God, O peoples! Give him a thunderous welcome! Psalm 66:1-8
Meditation:
Concert Hall of Praise for Mothers
If you are senior enough, you’ll remember Debbie Reynolds and Gene Kelly starring in the feel-good movie, Singin’ In the Rain. Even now, in your memory, you can hear them singing and see them dancing their way into your heart, and I defy you to not join in …
I’m singing in the rain, Just singing in the rain
What a glorious feelin’ I’m happy again
I’m laughing at clouds So dark up above
The sun’s in my heart And I’m ready for love
Let the stormy clouds chase, Everyone from the place
Come on with the rain, I’ve a smile on my face
I walk down the lane, With a happy refrain
Just singin’, singin’ in the rain.
I believe that music and singing (dancing, too) are God’s amazing gifts to us, gifts we use to praise Him. I think if you wake up in the morning with a song in your heart, that is God greeting you with “Good morning, Child of Mine.”
I can only imagine that tucked in among our sweet memories of our mothers are times when she sung to us or shared rhymes, maybe words and music that caused you to smile or distracted you from pains of the heart or something physical. Maybe what stirs in your mind is a lullaby that helped you to settle into sleep, or the warmth of her gentle embrace and the quiet humming of a song or hymn. The music of love.
The Bible is filled with music. Many of the songs were written by David, each one poetic, and often chanted. There are at least 25 Palms that were written to be sung, songs of praise in the worship of God. Often, but not always, these were marked with the key word ‘Hallelujah’.
I love hymn-sings. To praise the Lord with full voice of a familiar hymn brings joy to my heart. As a preacher’s kid, I grew up in the church and so many hymns are embedded to the point where the title, the first line or the first notes brings it all back. It is true worship.
When I look at the lectionary for the past three months and the Hymn of the Day suggestions for each Sunday, there are so many I don’t know. Hymns like “I Bind unto Myself Today” or “Jesus on the Mountain Peak”, they just aren’t familiar or often sung that I can recall. When such are the hymns, we tend to approach them timidly, trying to sort out the melody. Certainly, not full-voiced praise.
Still, this is worship. I sometimes find myself reading the words, rather than singing along, which is not nearly as satisfying, personally. Yet, worship isn’t personal to me, it is praising the Lord, and I need to keep that in mind.
I suppose for those early Christians, there were times when they came across a Psalm that may not have been that familiar, and maybe as they made their way to the house of worship, or within the family, they realize that the melody is helpful but the purpose of the Psalm is in the words. Just as the purpose of the Hymn of the Day is in the words of praise, the honoring of God. Hallelujah!
Our mothers knew how to plant seeds of love.
It’s Mother’s Day – But…
It’s also National Dance Like a Chicken Day! I think that fits perfectly with Mother’s Day. We dance in her honor, we sing the silly song in her honor. We “get the sillies out” in her honor. And we trot out all the happy memories in her honor.
The Chicken Dance
I don’t wanna be a chicken, I don’t wanna be a duck
So I shake my tail feathers and clap, clap, clap
She made a flap to the left Then a stomp to the right
Then she shook her tail feather Put her knees together real tight
Then she woggled and she wiggled And she joggled and she jiggled
All around the barn she pranced Now what would you call that?
A Chicken Dance.
Tada!
Tip of the Day:
Tomorrow is Mother’s Day. It is now legal to plant your flowers!! Smile, it’s a beautiful day.
A Prayer of Blessing for All Mothers:
Dear Lord, Bless every mother and every grandmother with the finest of your spiritual blessings today. Confirm in her heart and spirit the work of her hands and the love that she has so freely given to those children under Your care. Validate her worth daily, so she has no reason to doubt whether she is loved, valued, and cherished in the eyes of her Heavenly Father.
Create in her a deep sense of your protection and trust, so that worry and fear will disappear as she places her loved ones into Your care. Let her know that every prayer she has prayed and every encouraging word she has spoken on behalf of her children/grandchildren has been transformed into sweet, fragrant offerings before Your throne.
Let her joy be contagious; let her passion be pure; and let her life overflow with all the blessings she deserves—on special days, and on every day of her life. In Jesus’s name, Amen
