Joy that Leaps

The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. _{Psalm 28:7}

Looking at this verse in a slightly different way, I started with the last phrase and worked backward. With my song I give thanks to him… My song. This is personal. So, where did this song come from?

My heart exults… My song comes from a heart that is fit to burst. A heart that is filled with an uncontainable joy. Exult literally means ‘to leap up’. The best example of this is the lame beggar at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, after he had been healed. ‘And leaping up he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God’ ^{Acts 3:8}. Why leap?

I am helped… When help comes in answer to a great need, then joy and thanksgiving cannot be held in. It leaps out because it simply must be expressed. Why, though, was this help granted?

In him my heart trusts… The help was granted by grace, through faith. By trusting in God wholeheartedly with every burden, worry, need and concern, the door was open to receive his unending provision.

The Lord is my strength and my shield… The provision of God includes his presence as a shield around my life and his strength as a resource within my life. I trust Him because he is my protector and he has placed his hand upon my life. He helps me daily and my heart bursts with love for his goodness, his faithfulness, and his grace. This is why I have a song.

Let your song be heard by God today. Express to him the joy of your heart and thank him for all he has done.