Sharing Every Joy

I have such a wonderful time bathing in Scripture and journaling the things God shows me. I find myself very reluctant to "publish" these to the world (or the few people who read this blog). A thought from Amy Carmichael this morning cast a new light on it for me. She wrote:
Some of us are like Peter, "Silver and gold have I none." But we have other things: for example, books. Am I sharing my books and what I read in them? Am I sharing every joy I can?

I took that little thought of "sharing every joy" to heart and am laying out these encouraging words from the Psalms today.

The first one was Psalm 68:19-20 Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God who is our salvation. God is to us a God of deliverances...

My good friends Keil & Delitzsch mention that this "burden" (singular) is "the burden and pressure of the hostile world...which the Lord day by day helps His church to bear, inasmuch as He is mighty by His strength in her who of herself is so feeble". What comforting words when we do daily and sharply sense the hostility of the world. HE bears it, not just we.

Another verse in the chain of thought God was weaving for my day was Psalm 40:2 & 3: He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. David, just rescued from danger (out of the pit of destruction and out of the miry clay), is still exposed to peril. In that situation he offers praise to God because, according to Psalm 50:23 gratitude is the way to salvation. He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; and to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God.

Thankfulness and praise are to be my highest priority, for through them God shows His salvation, gives me deliverance and daily bears my burden. There is no provision in Scripture for downcast spirits. I can't always give thanks FOR all things but I certainly can give thanks IN all things. Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name (Heb. 13:15). A day spent in praise can't be wasted, no matter what else happens!