Tuesday, December 5, 2017
Psalm 100:1-2 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!
PREPARE FOR JOY
As we begin the season of preparation for Christmas, we are not alone. People all around the world will be preparing for Christmas during the next few weeks. Music is being prepared and presented by children, choirs, and instrumentalists, amateur and professional. Food is being gathered and prepared for the great feast days to come. Gifts are being prepared, wrapped, shopped and shipped by millions of people. Decorations are being constructed, purchased, installed, plugged in and turned on. Yet, with all of these preparations going on, the Christian knows that it is all worthless if we are not also preparing ourselves.
Of course, we have seen signs of Christmas even before this, and it really does not matter exactly when one begins Christmas preparations. The real question in all of this is: how are we preparing? The Psalm suggests that we should enter the season, and welcome our God with joy, and with thanksgiving.
What kind of Christmas are you looking for? Are you looking for a quiet and serene holiday this year-- sitting on the sofa in front of a beautifully decorated tree, nursing a mug of your favorite warm drink? We can all use times like that, can't we-- silent times, like those we sing about, when all is calm and all is bright around the Virgin Mary and her holy Child?
But the Psalmist calls for more than mere resting on the holiday. He calls upon us to welcome the LORD with shouts of joy. "Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth." May such a joy pervade even our quiet moments in the month ahead.
