"Sing aloud to God our strength; shout for joy to the God of Jacob" (Psalm 81:1)
The word shout is interesting to me here. When shouting occurs in our world it is generally seen as something not pleasant. Shouting in the home means that either your kids are not listening, you are trying to communicate up two flights of stairs to someone, or else the wife is rather perturbed about the husband not doing the things around the house he said he would (from personal experience).
In any case, when the psalmist writes that we are to "shout for joy" I take this to be akin to what happens when I'm watching the Redskins or Duke. I shout mostly in frustration (for example, last Sunday night when Duke lost to South Carolina). Still, I will shout for joy as well. I've often wondered, "Why don't I shout for Jesus?"
This may be a bit disturbing to others in our culture, but hey it could be a lot of fun. When someone tells you about a great blessing why not shout "Whoo hoo!" just like I would with a Redskins touchdown. When someone tells you about an amazing peace they have come to experience in their life, why not shout, "Yeah, baby, that's what I'm talking about Jesus! You da man!"
Of course, people may think we're crazy. But I don't know, maybe they will be edified and do it themselves. Next thing you know people could be shouting to the Lord all over, and wouldn't that truly be something to shout about?
Lord, may we shout our praise and thankfulness to you always and in all ways. Amen.
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