The Upper Room Daily Devotion – Thursday, 2 January 2014 “A New Old Song” Read Psalm 96

The Upper Room Daily Devotion – Thursday, 2 January 2014 “A New Old Song” Read Psalm 96: Praise to God Who Comes in Judgement

1 O sing to the Lord a new song;

    sing to the Lord, all the earth.

2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name;

    tell of his salvation from day to day.

3 Declare his glory among the nations,

    his marvelous works among all the peoples.

4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;

    he is to be revered above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,

    but the Lord made the heavens.

6 Honor and majesty are before him;

    strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,

    ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.

8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;

    bring an offering, and come into his courts.

9 Worship the Lord in holy splendor;

    tremble before him, all the earth.

10 Say among the nations, “The Lord is king!

    The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved.

    He will judge the peoples with equity.”

11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;

    let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

12     let the field exult, and everything in it.

Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy

13     before the Lord; for he is coming,

    for he is coming to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness,

    and the peoples with his truth.

[The Lord] put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.(Psalm 40:3 (NIV))

Recently I began studying the psalms and found that all human emotions are there — sorrow, praise, anger, bewilderment, thanksgiving, to name just a few. The psalmist’s mood often changes in just a few verses. One phrase is repeated in several psalms, and it struck me afresh recently: “Sing to the Lord a new song.” Like the psalmists, I’ve often felt weary or ultra-critical of myself or others. But unlike them, rather than moving on I tend to cling to those feelings. In doing so, I have blocked my vision of a great God who is always doing new things, who loves and sustains me — and all creation. Now when I feel negative emotion, I consciously try to sing to the Lord a new song by remembering and speaking of the positives in my life. In my prayer time, I slowly repeat the word blessing on each inhalation. As I breathe in, I’m reminded that God wants to bless me and all creation. As I breathe out, I repeat the word sing. In this way I worship God by singing God’s praises. In whatever mood I find myself, I try always to remember to sing to the Lord a new song with the words and actions of my life.(The Author-Sue McCoulough (Greater London, England))

Thought for the Day: Try breathing in God’s blessings and breathing out your song of praise.

Prayer: O God, help us to make our lives a song of praise to you. Amen.

Prayer focus: Church choirs

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