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In 1719 the English theologian Isaacs Watts composed one of the most popular American Christmas Carols “Joy to the World” based on Psalm 98. This psalm of praise rejoices in challenging us to “sing to the Lord a new song, while recounting the wonderful and marvelous things the Lord has done” (paraphrased from verse 1 of this psalm).  We are to join with heaven and nature in a shout of adoration and joy, complete with the full compliment of musical instruments. This song, perhaps more than any other, invites us to celebrate at the top of our lungs!

However, sometimes life happens, and all we are left with is a kind of subdued, quiet, barely audible ‘peep’. Isolation and separations, illness, death, difficult situations, overwhelming life events; these can all conspire to rob of us the ability to look very far past life itself! This can be especially hard at a time when society seems to be having so much fun without you!

Psalm 30:5b also speaks of joy, “Weeping may endure for a night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.” If this is a difficult time for you this year, please ask the Lord to accept your ‘peep’ as a sacrifice of praise and pray for the endurance to hold on to your morning when your joy will again ring out in a shout. If life if good, may I challenge you this Christmas season to look around you for someone else that might be struggling just to bring out a ‘peep’ instead of the shout of joy you are giving.

Joy to the World

Isaacs Watts, pub. 1719

Copyright status is Public Domain1.Joy to the world, the Lord is come!


Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n, and heav’n, and nature sing.

Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.

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