Psalm 100 is a passage of Scripture my dad referred to quite a bit when I was a kid, and it is certainly lovely. My parents went through a parenting phase where they would pay us $1 for every Bible verse we memorized, so I memorized this whole Psalm! A buck a verse was high-rollin’ cash for me as an 8-year-old.  🙂

I learned it in the King James Version, which sometimes translates the poetry of Scripture with much more poetic phrase and rhythm than modern translations. The below is a combination of KJV and ESV.

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
Know that the LORD, HE is God,
it is He that has made us, and not we ourselves;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
and His courts with praise!
Be thankful unto him, and bless his name!
For the Lord is good;
His steadfast love endures forever,
and His truth endures to all generations.

I need this reminder sometimes, this joyful call to worship. When I was younger, joyful singing came so naturally to me. My heart was often bowled over by God’s beauty and grandeur.

But in recent years, my love for Him has deepened, but my natural response of praise has often waned. It’s easier to get consumed with life’s difficulties and pour our my complaints to Him than to choose to enter His courts with thanksgiving and gladness. While I’m deeply thankful that He doesn’t turn me away for my expressions of grief, I’m also thankful that He calls me towards joy.

I have so much to thank Him for – His steadfast, faithful love; His enduring truth in a confusing world; and His tender care for His people, the sheep of His pasture.

I love the way the Gettys have given musical personality to the sentiments of the Psalmist. I hope their joyful song ushers you into the weekend with a joyful heart!