August 13 — Psalm 104

“Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, you are very great. You are clothed with honor and majesty, wrapped in light as with a garment. You stretch out the heavens like a tent, you set the beams of your chambers on the waters, you make the clouds your chariot, you ride on the wings of the wind, you make the winds your messengers, fire and flame your ministers. You set the earth on its foundations, so that it shall never be shaken. You cover it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. At your rebuke they flee; at the sound of your thunder they take to flight. They rose up to the mountains, ran down to the valleys to the place that you appointed for them. You set a boundary that they may not pass so that they might not again cover the earth. You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills, giving drink to every wild animal; the wild asses quench their thirst. By the streams the birds of the air have their habitation; they sing among the branches. From your lofty abode you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.” (Verses 1-13)

Psalm 104 begins and ends with the same self-exhortation that opens and closes Psalm 103: “Bless the LORD, O my soul.” The sentence appears only in these two psalms; its repetition holds them together as a pair.

“Bless the Lord, O my soul” — I guess it is true, praise should begin at home. It is hypocritical to ask others to lift up praises to G-d if we are ungratefully silent ourselves. We should find the joy that resides within our own lives and of course our hearts to awaken and realize the blessings G-d has first given us — before we press others to do the same. When we bless the Lord, we should do it personally, publicly, and often. To offer up half-hearted praise, and to offer up half-hearted worship is not worthy of the awesomeness of the Lord.

“O Lord my God, you are very great.” Is it too bold to call upon the Lord as “Mine”? I do not think so. If we believe in our hearts that Jesus is Lord and confess with our lips the same, then we are just as right to call Jesus “ours”, “mine” — for the Lord is a great G-d and worthy to be praised. God was great on Sinai, yet the opening words of his law were, “I am the Lord YOUR God;” his greatness is the reason to put our claim on Jesus as “ours”. It does not mean Jesus is ours “alone” — it just means that we worship one Lord, Jesus, who requires only faith, “alone”.

Let us pray:

God of majesty, we are constantly surrounded by your gifts and touched by your grace; our words of praise do not approach the wonders of your love. Send forth your Spirit, that our lives may be refreshed and the earth may be renewed, until the new heaven and new earth resound with the song of resurrection in Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Amen.