“Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song. Sing his praises in the assembly of the faithful. 2 O Israel, rejoice in your Maker. O people of Jerusalem, exult in your King. 3 Praise his name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp. 4 For the Lord delights in his people; he crowns the humble with victory. 5 Let the faithful rejoice that he honours them. Let them sing for joy as they lie on their beds.” Psalm 149:1-5 NLT
God of Glory and singing,
Well, this Psalmist says we should even sing for joy as we lie on our beds. Now that is not something I do too often. But its a good Sunday suggestion! Then we will be warmed up to praise and thanksgiving before we even get to church and there will be less room for negativity. And if we cannot get to church we will have an attitude of worship right where we are and no one can complain about our lack of tunefulness! Unless the windows are open.
Dancing, tambourine and harp? Maybe not for public display my dancing and I don’t have a harp or any musical instrument. I have been known to sashaying a little while washing up or clap to Christian radio or a CD!
But there’s something to think about in the middle of these 5 verses, The Lord delights in His people, crowns the humble with victory and honours the faithful. How wonderful to see ourselves from Your point of view. As giving You delight, being crowned and honoured! That surely brings joy, to know that You delight in our praises, and honour us for being faithful.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
God of Glory and singing,
Sing a love song over those we love and care about so they are soothed, refreshed and have hope. Bless our congregations with joy and praise and delight. Lift those up who are down and heal those who need a touch of Your Spirit. Give us joy in You even as we lie on our beds this evening.
Provide a safe and comfortable place to sleep for those who have lost their homes in earthquakes or floods. We pray for the transport of aid and relief to arrive quickly and where needed most.
We pray for a miracle and peace in our world and the end of conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
We thank You for all that blessed us in the week just passed and commit the week ahead to Your guidance and care.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Worship Sunday 17th September 2023
Come, we that love the Lord,
and let our joys be known;
join in a song with sweet accord,
and thus surround the throne.
Let those refuse to sing
who never knew our God;
but children of the heav’nly King
may speak their joys abroad.
The hill of Zion yields
a thousand sacred sweets
before we reach the heav’nly fields,
or walk the golden streets.
Then let our songs abound,
and every tear be dry;
we’re marching through Emmanuel’s ground
to fairer worlds on high.
‘Cause we’re marching to Zion,
beautiful, beautiful Zion.
We’re marching upward to Zion,
the beautiful city of God.