"Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation." - Psalm 95:1
(For those who like short and sweet, stop reading now. Today's DoP is long and "sticky.")
When I was a kid, I had a friend named Alan Beggarly. I remember all sorts of things about him. Only child. Mom's name, Joyce. Dad, Jim. Brace on his leg, the right one, I think. First kid to have Pong. (You don't remember Pong? I'm so sorry!) He had an awesome yard for football. We watched the World Series, all day games, at his house while we played this "dart" game with velcro balls where it didn't count if you hit the bullseye unless the ball stuck to the bullseye.
Like a velcro dart that counts, some things just stick with ya. Like childhood friendships and memories.
Other things, well, ya just wish they didn't. Stick, that is. Like regrets, guilt, grief, grudges, and loneliness that aches to your bones.
My football coaches used to say, "Get up. Shake it off."
But what do ya do when, no matter how much ya shake, stuff just keeps sticking?
I have a hunch.
The reason David wrote so many Psalms, like today's verse from Psalm 95, is not just because God inspired them, but also because David needed inspiring.
In other words, he had a lot sticking to him. Regrets, guilt, grief, grudges, and loneliness that ached to his bones.
No matter how much he shook, he couldn't shake it off.
So...he grabbed hold of something more.
That would stick.
Something greater that would stick to and cover, even wipe away, the lesser sticky stuff.
Ah, yes, the Word of God.
From deep within my soul, I can remember Bible passages I learned as a kid in the church choir. With friends, who were a lot like Alan Beggarly. We did stuff that counted...because it stuck. Like a velcro-ball bullseye.
Only better.
Over and over, Bob "Hon" Andrews would make us sIng the greater stuff until it stuck to our soul and covered the lesser stuff that might be sticking and aching to our bones.
As it was, he made us sing, as it is, today's verse from Psalm 95, over and over again, so that, even now, I remember it deep in my soul. "Oh Come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation. Oh come into his presence with thanksgiving, let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise. For the LORD is a great God and a great king above all gods." Ah, bullseye.
May God's word stick with you today. And forever!
Praise God!
Pastor Chris
"The gospel is the story of Jesus [what God's only Son has done for us that we can't do for ourselves], spoken as a promise." - Robert Jenson
No comments:
Post a Comment