Psalm 48:1-2a, 10 “Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth…According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth.”
Do you struggle to truly go all-in on Thanksgiving this year? Does the toughness of this past year or present challenges upon the horizon dim your view of God and His goodness that is all around you? Sadly our best strategy is often to put on a superficial smile or “coat of makeup” that cloaks the real, ugly position of our heart that is less than praiseworthy in the Lord’s sight. May I invite you to join me in simply looking within and around at the breathtaking evidences of divine beauty that shine despite the fallen world in which we plod- a decision impossible to make without sanctifying pray.
The Psalmist here declares that the people of God, no matter their circumstances, had good and consistent reasons to sing the praises of Jehovah. He had identified Himself with the people of God, Israel, and with the mountain of his holiness, Mount Zion, the city of Jerusalem. There, more than anywhere in the world, is God to be praised. “Beautiful for situation” literally means “beautiful for elevation.” Rising aloft in beauty, the city of Jerusalem was remarkable topographically; for it was set on the summit of one of the numerous hills of Judaea. Early called the “Queen of the East,” Jerusalem is indeed the joy of the whole earth (cf. Lam 2:15). It was the unique claim of Jerusalem to be the city of the great King. There God is known, and in that city the worship of Jehovah is centered.
For the New Testament believer, we today are the temple-the earthly dwelling place of God where He fully expects to be praised no matter what (1 Co 6:19-20). What a beautiful, challenging thought! If we have God within, the author and perfecter of all splendor, then we can be grateful this Thanksgiving no matter what is going on outside of our control. The question is not can you; it is will you! As one author put it, “It is possible to be thankful wherever you are.” Why-because God and His beauty is everywhere…if you will but look with fresh eyes that first close in supplication.
No hymn captures this inspired sentiment better than the Hymn “For the Beauty of the Earth”:
For the beauty of the skies
For the love
which from our birth
Over and around us lies
Over and around us lies
This our joyful hymn of praise
Of the day and of the night
Hill and vale
And tree and flower
Sun and moon and stars of light
This our joyful hymn of praise
Brother, sister, parent, child
Friends on earth
And friends above
For a gentle
Thoughts and mild
For a gentle
Thoughts and mild
This our joyful hymn of praise
To our race so freely given
Graces human and divine
Flow’rs of earth and buds of heav’n
Flow’rs of earth and buds of heav’n
This our joyful hymn, our joyful hymn of praise
This our joyful hymn of praise
Truly, no matter the season of life, prayerful praise is the antidote for the ugliness of sin in me and you. As Emma Scrivener reminds us, “When we’re tempted, Satan distracts us from Christ’s beauty. When we sin, he distracts us from Christ’s mercy.” Why is it so important that you fully celebrate Thanksgiving? Because…it is not about your beauty but God’s beauty! Let the gratitude out. Take the lead in your family and church. Let God, in all of His beauty, be known through your lips and life this year.
harleysnode 