‘Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy’ – Psalm 96.11-12
From Toni Clark:
On Bank Holiday Monday I met a friend for a walk through the Bluebell Woods up Reigate Hill. It was absolutely beautiful. There were carpets of bluebells as far as the eye could see, you could hear the wind rustling through the trees, and the occasional glimpse of the sun breaking through the leaves – it was gorgeous. We were chatting about how lovely it was, the beauty of God’s creation in the Springtime, how after the dark winter months the world starts to wake up – the beautiful rich colours of the bluebells contrasting with the browns of the earth and tree trunks and branches, the fresh green colours of the trees mingling with the darker greens of the evergreens we could see as we looked out across Surrey once we got to the top of the hill – (where it was very windy!).
That walk reminded me of these verses in Psalm 96. As the world wakes up from its winter slumber, it does feel like a bit of a celebration. Ok, so bluebells don’t actually chime like a bell (how incredible would that be if they did?!) but they are such a joyful flower. As we walked through the woods, you could hear the trees singing for joy as the wind whistled through the branches, the ground jubilant in a carpet of colour as the bluebells and other spring flowers blossomed. It did feel like the earth was rejoicing.
That got me thinking. How do we celebrate, how do we show our delight in the Lord? It might be hard at the moment as we begin to come out of lockdown, and it still feels that there’s a way to go before we return to normality. But we have so much to rejoice in: being able to meet friends outside, going to church to worship together (even if we can’t sing for joy yet!), for things beginning to return to normal.
Just that conversation with my friend reminded me how wonderful God is in providing such beauty in creation, and it made me want to praise and give thanks to Him. Recognising God in the world around us, thanking Him for providing not just for our needs but also our delight, brings Him joy, and that should make us want to celebrate and rejoice.
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