My wife and I are blessed with five grandchildren. The oldest, Connor, who is nearly five, was recently told his twin cousins would soon be arriving at our house. As soon as he heard that, he got excited and went to wait at the door. After over a half hour of watching, he was still there. When their car pulled up and Alexis and Sophie got out, Connor threw the door open and ran, squealing loudly with delight, to greet them. The feeling was mutual too, because both the girls ran to him, and they exuberantly hugged one another. Then they walked hand in hand back into the house to play nicely together, at least for a while, if you know what I mean.

Watching this experience got me to thinking about a principle repeated over and over in Scripture. Psalm 5:11 tells us: “But let all those that put their trust in Thee [the Lord] rejoice: let them ever shout for joy…let them also that love Thy name be joyful in Thee.” Most believers take joy in family, daily provisions, material things, even their salvation. But do we rejoice with exuberance and such excitement that we ever shout for joy? Again we are told in Psalm 32:11: “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.” Oh, that all of us so loved the Lord and were so excited about Him that, with joyful hearts, we shouted His praises. Lest we dismiss such a practice as a cultural thing intended only for Israel, consider the instructions of the Apostle Paul to the Body of Christ. In Philippians 4:4, he tells us: “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, rejoice.” Notice here the instruction is also to rejoice in God Himself. Yes, we can rejoice in His blessings, provisions and promises, but clearly the Lord wants us to rejoice, or find joy, in Him. Just as a parent or grandparent is thrilled to the core when their little one shows great joy in seeing and being with them, God Himself instructs us to love Him enough to be excited and joyful about our relationship with Him. Such a response on our part is desired from the Holy One, not just when things are going well or when we are in a place of worship, but all the time.

How about starting today? Meditate on His love, mercy, longsuffering, and grace, and then praise Him. Now, purposely, “rejoice in the Lord.”