“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” –Psalms 118:24
When we wake up to a day that seems to start and end with mesmerizing bad news, the world in turmoil, in need, underwater both literally and figuratively, how do we rejoice? When the first thing we wake up to is the same thing that kept us up all night—fear, insecurity, pain, lack of peace—how can we possibly be glad?
The poet who wrote this Psalm (prayer, poem, song) didn’t request that we try to be glad, or make that rejoicing contingent on circumstances. He didn’t give us any excuses. He said, and surely meant, that we will be happy for the day and in the day, that we must be. And the reason we will, must, and most definitely can is because the Lord made it. God, the Creator—all-wise and all-loving, always-wise, always-loving—saw fit to bring this precious day into being, and has placed us in it, to be carried on its purpose, embraced in its comforts, and elevated by its joys, opportunities, blessings. He made this day to show forth His nature, and that nature is infinite goodness, perfect life and love.
This same Psalm begins with this verse: “O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: because his mercy endureth forever.”
This thanks, this acknowledgment, this awareness of the infinite nature of God’s mercy, His love, enabled the writer to rejoice, and to see the present day, this very hour, for what it was—the substance of God’s own intention, activity, consciousness. The day was full of God, good, and not of gloom, doom, trouble. He opened his eyes to this fact, this dawn, rather than to fear and preparation for disappointment. In this morning glow, the Psalmist could then so lovingly remind us all to celebrate this and be ready and receptive to wonderful things, rather than braced for trouble. He was offering, from personal experience most likely, and with real conviction, a ready remedy for a bad day.
With the awareness and acceptance of our good day—the reality of heaven’s promises—it can no longer be hidden to us by a darkened disposition. We simply can’t entertain good thoughts and bad thoughts simultaneously. We can’t be hopeless when we have hope.
The solution to the woes of our lives and the bad news that we read and hear, is not going to appear by our fear, our doubt, our outrage, our sadness. These bad tidings can’t leave when we are holding on to them so tightly, and expecting so little. The darkness feeds on darkness, only deepening its intensity. But the light, even a glimmer—gratitude, honoring God, Life, good—will surely make for a brighter day, rich with new revelations, ripe for miracles, and inviting us into warmly in, to frolic, to flourish, to fearlessly live!
Rejoice and be glad with me today! It is God’s day and ours to celebrate!
Being Free Now 