Psalm Meditation 580
Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time
July 31, 2011

Psalm 100
1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.
5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
(NRSV)

It seems that the first thought of many of us when we think of joyful noise to the LORD is of exuberant leaping and shouting and dancing in worship. While that is a comfortable worship style for some, it is outside both comfort and experience for many of us. Leaping and shouting is not the only way to express our joy. Some express joy through tears, others in the broadest smile their face will allow, some through a sparkle in the eye. For each of these the emphasis is on the joy that comes from being in the presence of God.

The psalmist puts the emphasis on activities other than the physical expressions of our joy. There is gladness, singing, thanksgiving and praise as a part of our joyful noise to the LORD. There are times when one or more of these characteristics is missing from our worship and it makes a difference for us and others. When I am not glad to be in worship, or worse when no one is glad to be in a particular worship setting, the service suffers. Each characteristic makes a difference in the rest of the worship experience. Without gladness the singing, thanks-giving and praise suffer. If there is no singing it is a somber service. Without thanksgiving worship is missing something. Without praise worship seems empty.

Whether our joy is expressed in a way that anyone can see it or we keep it inside we are joy filled by the presence of God, who loves us beyond our ability to comprehend. The psalmist invites us to move toward worship experiences that are filled with gladness, singing, thanksgiving and praise so the we can more easily open ourselves to the faithful and steadfast love that comes to us from God.

July 25, 2011