This Is the Day

This is the day the Lord has made;

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

This is the day that the Lord has made…..I will rejoice and be glad in it….the song kept running through my head this morning as I lay in bed waiting for the sun to come up. As I lay there thinking about the day ahead and contemplating whether the Lord was speaking to me about getting up out of bed, it dawned on me (pun intended!) that I had never fully grasped the full meaning of that statement.

This is the day that the Lord has made, I thought. The whole day stretches out before me. The sun will come up and light will burst forth and the sun will warm the earth as well as my aching bones. Joy really does come in the morning, at the beginning of a new day, when the night has past and the new day has come.

How many times, I thought, have I weathered through a dark night of the soul, a darkened path in my journey through life? And why didn’t I realize that there would soon be a new day dawning, a new season to be entered into, a new bursting forth of life and light? God created the night as well as the day and I will rejoice and be glad in it. Yes, sometimes it takes perseverance to get through the hard times but I will put my trust in the Lord that He will bring me through it to enter into a new day that He has made.

So then, in each day that the Lord gives me, I will rejoice in His faithfulness to me and to the whole world. The sun will come up; light will burst forth; He will provide for our needs; He will lead us through the day; He will be with us as we rest through the night and wait for the next day to begin.

He is so faithful to bring the sun and the moon to shine upon us each 24 hour period, why do we have such a hard time trusting Him to bring us through the dark days of the soul? After all, in both Hebrew and English we often use the word “day” to refer to a season of time as well as a 24 hour period. For example, as I write today (Nov. 22) I am looking forward to that day (season of time) when there will be no more tears and we will be dancing on streets that are golden and everyone will know the Lord.

Therefore, when I sing that this is the day that the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it, I can sing with a full understanding that whatever the new day, the new 24-hour period brings, I can rejoice and be glad that the Lord is on the throne of my life and I can trust Him to take me through whatever that day brings. Even if it brings me through the valley of the shadow of death or even physical death itself, I know that my God is faithful and He will bring me through to enjoy a new day, a new season, in Him.

No matter what happens – whether it be something fantastic or something terrible, whether I am victorious or humbled in defeat, whether I lose my job, go through a divorce, come down with a horrible disease, become disabled, go bankrupt – whatever happens, God is with me and He will bring me through it and lead me into a new season of peace, prosperity, and rest in Him. Sometimes we are blessed with a taste of this new season, a taste of heaven, here on earth. Other times we can only patiently wait, knowing that this is the day the Lord has made and there is also another Day that He has made that we can only look for and anticipate from a distance.

All of this, this Day of the Lord that Scripture speaks about and we look forward to, is reserved for those who call upon the Lord and put their trust in Him. They are promises made to God’s people, not to the whole population of planet earth. Even though all are invited, not all hear the Message and only a few accept the Lord’s invitation into His kingdom. Many are not willing to bow their knee and give Him the throne of their life. They miss their Day of visitation, the moment in time or even season in life when God is revealing Himself to them and calling them to lay down their lives and follow Him.

Wherever you are at in this process, whether you have been a follower of Jesus your whole life or whether you are just now considering if this might be the day God visits you and changes your life, please know this: God loves you and He has revealed Himself in Jesus Christ. More than two thousand years have passed since the Light burst forth and marked the beginning of a brand new Day of the Lord. Those who receive the Light, who receive Jesus and accept Him as their Lord and Savior, enter into a new day, a day where there sins are forgiven, their mistakes are forgotten, and they have the victory over sin and the grave. They will be with the Lord forever and ever, no matter what happens.

This is the Day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. Will you join me?

Let’s Pray Together: Lord Jesus, this is the Day that You have made and I will rejoice and be glad in it. You have called me to Yourself in the past, You are calling me now, and You will continue to call me and lead me until that Day when I see you face to face and we are together for all eternity. In the meantime, today and every day you give me, help me to live for You. I give you my life and everything I have and everything that is within me. After all, You gave Your life for me. Thank you, Lord, and thank you for this day that you have made. Help me to enter into the fullness of everything You have for me today. Help me to be a blessing to others and to tell them about this Day that you have made….(continue praying as you feel led...)

Scriptures: 1 Peter 2:12, Psalm 118, 

Action Point: Take time today to thank God for this day that God has made. Thank him for the literal 24-hour day and rejoice that He will be with you throughout the day and that He will help you through whatever happens. Then thank Him for the this Day of the Lord that He has made and rejoice that your sins are forgiven and you will be with Him forever. Contemplate these things as you go through your day today.