Glorify the Lord with Me (Psalm 34:1-7)

¹ I will extol the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.
² I will glory in the Lord;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
³ Glorify the Lord with me;
let us exalt his name together.

⁴ I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
⁵ Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
⁶ This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.
⁷ The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.

 ____________

 What struck me in this psalm today is the invitation in verse 3 for others to join David in his offering of praise.  David has personal reasons for praising the Lord.  As he points out, the Lord answered his prayer in a time of trouble.  But David invites others to praise the Lord along with him for what the Lord has done.

This is part of what is going on when Christians gather for worship.  We are glorifying the Lord together for what He has done in our lives.  Unfortunately, there is rarely an opportunity for us to share with others the specific reasons we are praising the Lord in our own lives.  We are able to do this to a certain extent as we share our “thanksgivings” during the prayer time when we gather for worship. There is more opportunity for that when we gather in groups and have opportunity to tell others what God has been doing in our lives.

This just leads me to reflect on the value of corporate worship, whether in the congregation or small groups, or even when two Christians go to the Lord together.  God has made us for relationship, and He has made us for worship. It’s beautiful and uplifting when we bring those two together.

And this is part of what makes these days of quarantine so difficult for us as Christians.  I am so thankful for the opportunities that technology has afforded us to come together virtually.  But I am so looking forward to the day we can gather together physically, join our voices together, and proclaim the Lord’s praises.

So my prayer today is for the Lord to bless my worship life with others.  I pray that the times of worship for our congregation would also be blessed, as we are drawn into the Lord’s presence together.

NOTE:

Live Stream worship each Sunday at 9:30 AM and Wednesdays at 7:00 PM.  Not in our sanctuary, but in your home.  Please go to this page for more information: https://stjohnslutheran.net/live-streaming-worship-at-st-johns/

 If you do not already subscribe to the e-vine, please sign up here:  https://tinyurl.com/skxrd33