READING: Psalms 103, 108-110, 122, 124
“My soul, bless the Lord, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. My soul, bless the Lord.” Psalm 103 begins with this admonition and concludes with the same one in the last verse of the psalm. That kind of “bookend” emphasizes the point and challenges the reader not to miss the material between the bookends. The writer wants us to focus on reasons to “bless” the Lord—a word that means, “to acknowledge someone in his position of power.”[1] This one we bless is “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love” (Psa 103:6), and “he has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our iniquities” (Psa 103:10). He has compassion on us as a father has for his children. Moreover, our lives are brief, but He is eternal.
Our praise is to be with all that is within us—with all our being, with fervor, with abandon. I am to praise Him. You are to praise Him. We are to praise Him together. The angels are to praise Him. All his works are to praise Him. All that praise, though, starts with each of us choosing not to forget all His blessings to us. May the Lord help us all to meditate on His goodness throughout this weekend!
PERSONAL REFLECTION: Are you blessing the Lord with your life and your words?
TODAY’S PRAYER: “God, help me to follow You faithfully and fully today.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Psalms 131, 133, 138-141, 143
[1] Hans-Joachim Kraus, A Continental Commentary: Psalms 60–150 (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1993), 291.