Tuesday, November 30, 2021
Joy and the Psalms
Power
The Book of Psalms calls us to praise God and during this first week of Advent we will focus on the power of the psalms in a number of ways: to connect us with God as sisters and brothers in Christ, to give us a healing pathway on which to carry our lament to the Spirit, to call us together as we praise and honor the creator God, and to offer us more examples of how God’s joy surprises us with awesome power.
Click on the scripture links and explore other versions of these verses. Share an idea about the surprise of joy in the dark places and times in our lives with a loved one, a neighbor or friend. And allow the surprise of joy to brighten each day as we move forward in the season of hope-filled waiting for the arrival of the Christ.
Psalm 20 verse 27: Then we will shout for joy over your victory and celebrate your triumph by praising our God. May the Lord answer all your requests. Do we acknowledge that God’s powerful joy converts darkness into light?
Psalm 30 verse 11: You have changed my sadness into a joyful dance; you have taken away my sorrow and surrounded me with joy. Are we willing to let go of old arguments and give our sorrow over to the power of God’s joy?
Psalm 46 verse 4: There is a river that brings joy to the city of God, to the sacred house of the Most High. Do we rely on God’s joy more than we rely on our own resources?
Psalm 48 verse 2: The mountain of God, is high and beautiful; the city of the great king brings joy to all the world. Is there a new way we might make ourselves more open to the power of joy?
If this week’s exploration of Psalms calls you to search for more surprises, click on the word Joy in the categories cloud in the blog’s right hand sidebar and choose a reflection, or enter the word Joy in the blog search bar. You may also want to visit the Joy for the Journey blog at www.joyforthee.blogspot.com to see how joy surprises you there. Tomorrow, shout for joy!
Image from: http://ebeth.typepad.com/reallearning/2009/11/advent-and-christmas-clicking.html
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