Psalms 8:1, 16:2, and 95:1-7a

My Shepherd met me in His green pastures and laid me down in the Psalms. I read Psalms 95 through 102. Psalm 100 is where the Mind of the Spirit drew the spirit of my mind into communion with Him.

Psalms 100:0 ¶ A Psalm of praise.

Psalms 100:1 ¶ Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.

Psalms 100:2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

Psalms 100:3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Psalms 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Psalms 100:5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

This psalm is titled A Psalm of Praise. I was feeling troubled because I have run into a time of trouble and was struggling with some anxiety. Psalm 102:1-2 is where I expected to connect with the LORD:

Psalms 102:0 ¶ A Prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his complaint before the LORD.

Psalms 102:1 ¶ Hear my prayer, O LORD, and let my cry come unto thee.

Psalms 102:2 Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.

But the Spirit kept drawing me back to Psalm 100. So I looked more closely at the set of psalms concluding with no. 102 (see Psalm 90-102) and noticed all of Psalms in this set that the Holy Ghost kept pinting me to called the saints to praise with a joyful noise and thanksgiving (Psalm 95:1-2), to sing to the LORD and bless His name (96:1-2), to call on the Earth to rejoice and be glad (97:1), to sing to the LORD for His marvelous works (98:1), to praise His great and terrible name Who sitteth between the Cherubim (99:1-3), to make a joyful noise to Him (Psalm 100), to sing of His mercy and judgment (101:1). Then I looked at the pslams of David that followed Psalm 102: “Bless the LORD, O my soul” (Psalm 103:1), “Bless the LORD, O my soul” (104:1), “O give thanks unto the LORD,” and “Sing unto him” (Psalm 105:1-2), “Praise ye the LORD, O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good” (Psalm 106:1), and this set concludes with Psalm 107, “O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good” (Psalm 107:1). Seven Psalms from 95-101, then five psalms following no. 102, and all of them call the saint to praise, rejoicing, and thanksgiving.

Along the still waters, it occurred to me that the Spirit was not pleased with all the “noise” I was making in His Temple and wanted to hear a joyful noise to my LORD (Psalm 102:1). It was like He was saying to me, Don’t you know that the LORD is God, “it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture”? (Psalm 100:3). There is nothing He can’t handle, nor is anything too hard for Him (Jeremiah 32:17). The Spirit asked me, You quote Romans 8:28 all the time, but today you forgot the truth that “All things work together for good.” “For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generation” (Psalm 100:5). Therefore, enter His presence with thanksgiving, be thankful to Him, and bless His name (Psalm 100:4).

In the valley, kneeling in the shadow of His Cross, He reminded me that even He once prayed the cup to be removed (Luke 22:42), and cried, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me” (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:46). He brought my attention to the fact that He enclosed the request in submission to His will: “If thou be willing” and “nevertheless not my will, but thine be done” (Luke 22:42). Submission to His will is the key.

Jesus spoke to my heart His daily call to discipleship: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23).

At the table, He anointed my head with His oil and filled my cup with His grace. Goodness and mercy followed me as I followed Him into His harvest: to “Serve the LORD with gladness,” like He did, when He, “for the joy that was set before him endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2).

Praying for revival! 🙏

Going live asap: (Probably later this afternoon).

I’ll send the link when I’m able to go on.