THE WONDER OF WILDERNESS

THE WONDER OF WILDERNESS

READ:
Psalm 98

Shout joyfully to the LORD,
all the earth; break forth in
song, rejoice, and sing praises.
-Psalm 98:4

The psalmists had an advantage in praise because of their closer tie to the natural world.  David began life outdoors as a shepherd, then spent years hiding in the rocky terrain of Israel.  Not surprisingly, a great love, even reverence, for the natural world shines through many of his poems  The psalms present a world that fits together as a whole, with everything upheld by a personal God watching over it.

Wilderness announces to our senses the splendor of an invisible, untamable God.  How can we not offer praise to the One who dreamed up porcupines and elk, who splashed brightgreen aspen trees across hillsides of gray rock, who transforms the same landscape into a work of art with every blizzard?

The world, in the psalmist's imagination, cannot contain the delight God inspires.  "Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; break for in song, rejoice, and sing praises" (Psalm 98:4).  Nature itself joins in:  "Let the rivers clap their hands; let the hills be joyful together before the LORD" (v.8).

The psalms wonderfully solve the problem of a praise-deficient culture by providing the necessary words.  We merely need to enter into those words, letting God use the psalms to realign our inner attitudes. -Philip Yancey

All creatures of our God and King,
Lift up your voice and with us sing, Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam, Thou silver moon
with softer gleam!  O praise Him! -St. Francis of Assisi
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In praise, the creature happily acknowledges that
everything good comes from the Creator.

INSIGHT
Psalm 98 is jubilant in its invitation to praise God.  In verses 4-6, the psalmist exalts God as King.  He enlists the harp, trumpets, and horn to accompany the human voices lifted in praise and adoration of the sovereign King.  In verses 7-9, God is praised for being the righteous Judge.  Marvelous word pictures are used to magnify His justice.  The fullness of the sea is to roar, the rivers are to clap their hands, and the hills are to be joyful together.  Voice, instruments, and nature join in the praise God.

Have a blessed day and week ahead.
God Our Creator's Love Always
Unity & Peace