Something is Missing

For the LORD is a great God and a great King above all gods,
—Psalm 95:3

For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
—Psalm 95:7

How do you respond to those verses?

Linger over them…

Read them again. Out loud.

Let them soak into your conscience.

What images do great God and great King conjure in your spirit?

Consider the difference between great God and For He is our God.

What about, we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand?

Allow those statements to stir within your soul.

Now, what is your response?

Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as in the day of Massah in the wilderness, “When your fathers tested Me, they tried Me, though they had seen My work. —Psalm 95:8-9

After the plagues in Egypt, the crossing of the Red Sea, the destruction of Pharaoh’s army, the revelation and giving of the law at Sinai, the Israelites couldn’t find water. They were justifiably concerned. But rather than remembering the God who had led them to this point and trusting Him to continue to care for them, they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” —Exodus 17:2 They failed to consider Whose hands they were in. This is the warning of verse 8.

This Psalm leaves no room to simply move on. It calls us to remember and respond.

Remember Who God is. Remember what He has done. Remember what He has promised to do.

Too many of our devotional times are rushed. We have schedules to keep, things that must be done, people who need us. So we squeeze our devotional time in when we can. But even sincere quiet time will lose its power when rushed. Not only do we sacrifice the work that God’s Word could do in us, we neglect the opportunity to respond. And our response is just as important as any insight we may have gained.

O come, let us sing for joy to the LORD, let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. —Psalm 95:1-2

Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker. —Psalm 95:6

How do those verses compare to your response?

The words themselves carry more weight than we tend to hear… Let’s remember the Hebrew audience and consider the phrases the Psalmist uses:

“Sing for joy” → (ranan) → a ringing, almost piercing cry
“Shout joyfully” → (rua‘) → a loud, public shout (used for battle cries and coronations)
“Come before…with thanksgiving” → (yadah) → to give thanks, often with extended hands
“Worship / bow down” → (shachah) → to prostrate, to lower oneself fully
“Kneel” → (barak) → to bend the knee

That’s not one posture. It’s a range of response — from loud, overflowing expression... to physical surrender.

How does that compare to your response?

If you are like me, it seems foreign.

I have a desk set up in my bedroom. That’s where I typically read and study (and write). It seems awkward... silly... to shout out, extend my hands, lay prostrate, or kneel... I have to force myself to even read out loud most of the time. But even internally, I’m restrained. I read over these passages — sometimes even slowing down to gather some extra insight — and then move on. After all, I have other passages I want to read, food to prepare, chores around the house, and articles to write... I don’t have time to linger.

But in my haste, I’m robbing myself. I am reducing what is probably the most important thing I will do today, to just another item to check off my agenda.

What a tragedy!

When I consider the prominent role praise and worship play in the book of Revelation, I am humbled by my casual response to God.

In God’s presence, the inhabitants of heaven are constantly shouting, singing, and reciting verses of praise, worship, and adoration. Revelation seems to show heaven erupting in praise at every act of God. Not because they are dramatic, but because they are true. Heaven is not bored with God. I often am.

I seem to take it all for granted. I find that I am rarely amazed by what God is doing or has done. Sure, I am impressed... but amazed? In awe? Driven to shout or kneel? Not so much.

I find in my life, the scale has shifted way too far toward balance, dignity, and self-control.

As a believer with access to the completed Word of God, I know what the ultimate future holds. I know Who wins. I know where my eternity will be spent. I know that God is working all things... all things!

But I react to that knowledge casually. I stand with my hands in my pockets and just watch it all go by.

I find in the Psalms a repeated urging to engage. To consider Who God is. To remember what He has done. To trust what He has promised to do.

And to respond.