We encourage you to read this devotion
three times a day. Start in the morning and reflect upon the morning
reflection question. Then in the afternoon, read it again and reflect using the
noon question for reflection. For the evening, take time to ponder how
this has resonated with you in the day and reflecting using the evening
question. We offer a prayer with each devotion for you to pray or we
invite you to pray what is in your heart.
Psalm 81:1-10
Rejoice out loud to God, our strength!
Shout for joy to
Jacob’s God!
2 Take up a song and strike the drum!
Sweet lyre along with harp!
3 Blow the horn on the new moon,
at the full moon, for our day of celebration!
4 Because this is the law for Israel;
this is a
rule of Jacob’s God.
5 He made it a decree for Joseph
when he went out against the land of Egypt,
when I heard a language I did not yet know:
6 “I lifted the burden off your shoulders;
your hands are free of the brick basket!
7 In distress you cried out, so I rescued
you.
I answered you in the secret of thunder.
I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah
8 Listen, my people, I’m warning you!
If only you would listen to me, Israel.
9 There must be no foreign god among you.
You must not bow down to any strange deity.
10 I am the LORD your God,
who brought you up from Egypt’s land.
Open your mouth wide—I will fill it up!
Reflection:
A few years ago my family celebrated my
aunt’s 90th birthday. We invited her
friends and other family members to a small
community center in her hometown.
We had cake and punch. Yet, we didn’t tell
my aunt about it. If she knew we were
going through all this trouble, she would
never have come. A cousin told her we
needed her at the community center and she
was completely surprised when she
arrived. What are we celebrating, she
asked. To which we all responded, “You!”
This psalm is a psalm about celebration. It
is divided into two sections: a call to
song (v. 1-5) and the Lord’s reply
(v.6-10). The call to song describes a festival
and the marvel and revelry that accompanies
days of celebration. It is cheerful
and exciting. The Lord’s reply, however, is
more somber and foreboding. It calls
the people back to remember why they are
celebrating in the first place. It asks
the people to answer the same question my
aunt asked, “what are we
celebrating?” God replies, “You are
celebrating me, and only me. That I rescued
you, brought you out of Egypt, and that I
am your God.” God seems to do this
over and over again for the people of
Israel. They forget who they are or why
they are celebrating and God reminds them
because we all need a reason to
celebrate.
Reflection Questions:
Morning: What is
your reason for celebrating God in your life?
Noon: When is it
easiest to be distracted about why you celebrate God?
Evening: How can
you be reminded that your celebration is about God and not something else?
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