Psalm 98 (NIV)
1 Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. 2 The Lord has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. 3 He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. 4 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; 5 make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, 6 with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn— shout for joy before the Lord, the King. 7 Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. 8 Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; 9 let them sing before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.
The picture above is a lyre. I can not play one. I had to google it to figure out what it was. I do know what a trumpet looks like, but I can’t play that either! If I’m going to employ a musical instrument to praise God, it will have to be something I can hit. As a classically trained percussionist, I can make music with a few instruments, but they all involve hitting. I might also be able to sing a song or two, though these offerings might not sound much better. Good thing the stated goal is to “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!” (Ps 98:4) I can always make some noise! As this year draws to a close, I invite you to watch for the outbursts, to join in with the celebration. With each uproar, I invite you to take a moment and praise God for all he has done. With every shout of celebration, recall that our God has come and will come again. Let’s raise a shout! Praise be to God!