“My heart is steadfast, O God! I will sing and make melody with all my being! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn! I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is greater than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!” Psalm 108:1-5
I am a whistler and a hummer—it’s in my genes—so were my father and grandfather. There are times when my brain tunes in mid-way through stanza two of a favorite hymn, or well into a memorable song. David’s Psalm 108, though, is, word-for-word, a song of intentional praise. Whether it is sung (or spoken) with emphasis on the “is/will”s of God, or the active verbs “sing/make melody/awake/give thanks/sing praises,” every statement is deliberate, every word counts. Six exclamation points in five verses punctuate not only great resolve, but enthusiastic passion and wholeheartedness in his praise.
How hearty is my music to God? Does it involve my heart and all my being? Does my song awaken the dawn? Does it continue throughout the day?
“Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in endless praise.
Take my voice and let me sing,
Always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.” Frances Havergal (1874)
May I ever exalt You, Lord, by thoughtfully and constantly voicing my thanks and praise.
