Thoughts for the Day

A Song of Ascents.

Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
Lift up your hands to the holy place,
and bless the Lord.

May the Lord, maker of heaven and earth,
bless you from Zion.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

This tiny little Psalm, number 134, is a Song of Ascent, sung by pilgrims as they climbed the hills to the Temple in Jerusalem all those centuries ago. But just what does it mean to "Bless the Lord"? We know that the Lord blesses us, but when Psalm 134 tells us to bless Him, what are we being invited and indeed commanded to do?

Charles Spurgeon, the great Baptist preacher said that to bless the Lord means we must:

• “Think well of Jehovah, and speak well of him. Adore him with reverence, draw near to him with love, delight in him with exultation.”

So to bless the Lord is to honour and worship him with our thoughts, affections, and with our actions. Still not much the wiser? Well being a very practical person, it occurs to me that you might have a "Good morning, God" time, first thing, rather than a "Goodnight, God" when you might fall asleep. It might be short and sweet if work calls, but if time allows then it could be more structured. Try focussing not on asking for help but on the joy of being with someone you love and therefore on thankfulness. Thank God: for being present in the world through His Holy Spirit; for the joy of a new morning; for the new day with its possibilities; or for all that is good in life. Yes, there's a time for saying sorry, and for asking His help, but rein in stray thoughts for a moment to hone in to focussing on praise and thankfulness for God's glorious generosity to His world and its people.

Father God,
we praise You and bless You -
for the wonderful creation that is our world;
for its complexity;
for its diversity;
and for its beauty.
Especially we bless You -
for the people we love;
for the community that is the Church;
and for Your Son who reached out to us,
so that we might be offered a new life.
Amen.