“This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” – Psalm 118:24
Really? With all that’s going on in our country and the world we are to rejoice and be glad? Yes! Those of us who know the Lord, who belong to Him, who trust Him, who, through faith, know that He is sovereign and in control, can rejoice and be glad. The Lord is our hope and rejoicing. He knows the end from the beginning and we can trust Him with all our heart (Proverbs 3:5,6).
Each New Day
Each new day is a gift from God. It brings with it, challenges, struggles, joy, hopes, dreams, fulfillment, disappointment, tragedy, happiness, sorrow, bad news, good news, complaints, conflicts, blessings, pain, victory and defeat. Regardless of the circumstances, each day is a gift from God and it is up to us how we respond to it. When things are going well, it is easy to rejoice and be glad and we say, “God is good.” What about when things are not going well? Is rejoicing and gladness still on the menu? Do we still say, “God is good”? Recently, a friend of ours was in the hospital battling COVID-19. He was released to go home with 24/7 oxygen. On the way home, his wife relayed to him the message that his father in another state had just passed away from COVID. This was a tough blow for him, yet he was able to rejoice and be glad because he trusts our sovereign God. This story and others like it have been repeated thousands of times in the last year, and they continue in this new year. Our hearts sorrow for the suffering and loss of so many. But through it all, we must trust the Lord, and through trusting, we can rejoice and be glad.
Rejoice and Be Glad
For the last several years Ted, my husband, has put together twelve (one for each month) Bible verses for us to memorize and to quote each day. By the end of the month usually we have committed the verse to memory. Plus it is a blessing and a reminder to turn our thoughts towards the Scriptures. I have shared these same verses with the ladies in our Sunday School class. The January verse is Psalm 118:24, “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Each Sunday morning we quote the verse together as well as sing the verse. It is a reminder for us to remember that no matter what a day of life may bring, we are to rejoice and be glad. Naturally, I’m hoping that each will memorize the verse and apply it daily. It is amazing how this practice can change the way we enter into our days. We don’t always wake up feeling well, and the news from the nation and the world can be alarming, but knowing, “This is the day which the LORD hath made” gives us reason to rejoice and be glad.
How Can We Rejoice and Be Glad?
How about you? How do you face each day? How do you respond to sorrowful, difficult and challenging circumstances? How can you rejoice and be glad? Here are some suggestions that may help.
*When you wake up, quote or sing the verse, “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). Say to yourself, “God is good all the time. All the time, God is good.”
*Tell the Lord, “No matter what the day brings, I trust You.” “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). This year I keep a Bible and a daily devotional book on my bedside table. Each morning before I get out of bed, I read the devotion for the day along with the Bible reference. It is proving to be a really good source of comfort and encouragement to me.
*Overcome fear. “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed (overwhelmed); for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee” (Isaiah 41:10, 13). When fear has a hold on us, our faith seems to fade. These words from Isaiah are precious promises that we can rely on to help our fear to fade.
*Be thankful. Read Psalm 100:4-5, “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving�be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” When I seem to be leaning towards what I call “black cloud days,” and rejoicing and gladness don’t easily come, I thank the Lord for the many blessings, naming them one by one, he has given. This thanksgiving causes joy and gladness to return.
Keep hope alive. “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost” (Romans 15:13). We can keep hope alive in this life and in the one to come. A statement a radio preacher made many years ago when we were experiencing trials and sorrow has been a huge source of encouragement to me. He said, “As long as there is a God in Heaven, we have hope.” God will always be there and we can always have hope.
*Claim your peace. Even in the current troubling times, we can experience personal peace. Jesus Christ is that source of peace. He said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
*Rest in the Lord. “Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him…” (Psalm 37:7). Often we weary ourselves trying to fix problems and situations. We need to stop trying, and start trusting the LORD to take care of things. He says in Matthew 11:28-29, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden (burdened), and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Sometimes when I am weary, both mind and body, I kick back in my oh-so-soft recliner, close my eyes, rest, and nap. I wake up refreshed and ready to get going again. It would be good for us to “kick back” in the Lord, rest and wait patiently for Him. He knows the end from the beginning and we can rest in Him.
“This is the day…(it is a gift from God).
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
This is written…because I care.–Carlene
Rejoice and Be Glad
This is written…because I care.–Carlene
