Joy in the House of the Lord

*This post was first shared with The Round Farmhouse Ministries for June’s “Lyrics of Life: A Journey through Psalms” series.

Psalm 122:1 ESV “I was glad when they said to me, Let us go to the house of the Lord!”

Several times a year, faithful Jewish followers traveled from all over the nation of Israel to the temple in Jerusalem to celebrate God’s faithfulness. Coming together as one cohesive group was a fabric woven into the rhythm of their lives. However, making the trek to the Temple in Jerusalem during Bible times wasn’t easy. Instead of a ten minute car ride across town, the Jewish people might have traveled for several days to weeks to arrive at their final destination. In order to make every moment count, they prepared their hearts to be ready to worship once they arrived. 

As they climbed the ascent toward the temple, one of the verses they would recite was Psalm 122:1 ESV “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord!” When I think about the song “House of the Lord” by Phil Whickham, it reminds me of the words of this psalm. When we remember the omnipresence of God: who He was, who He is, and who He will always be, joy fills our souls in a way that must be outwardly expressed. 

Worshiping through music powerfully points us to pause and participate in praising God. Through singing these lyrics, our minds flashback to rich testimonies of God’s provisions in the past. When we think about how:

• God parted the raging sea with Moses and the Israelites
• God broke open the prison doors for Paul and Silas
• Jesus healed and saved many people
• Jesus hung on the cross and rose from the grave

These lyrics remind us that the joy that comes from being the house of the Lord isn’t from obtaining perfect lives without any complaint, concern, or calamity. 

When we shift our focus from our problems to the Problem-solver, we recognize that His faithfulness extends to every generation.Our collective response to His faithfulness is worshiping Him through shouting and singing our praise. We won’t be quiet, because our joy for who He is and all He has done bubbles up out of us. We can’t help but to be glad to be in the house of the Lord with other believers. As we share our collective gratitude for who He is and all He has done, we find strength to trust He will continue to provide for us in the years to come. 

Friend, what might it be like if we recited some of the Psalms of Ascent (120-132) before we traveled to our local churches this weekend? We could also intentionally sing along with Phil Wickham and let his lyrics be the anthem of our souls as we load up our minivans. Our hearts could be softened before we entered the door. Whatever we face this week, let’s make the trek to our local churches this Sunday. No matter what threatens to shake our confidence, we know that if our hearts are open to it, there is joy in His house today.