The line formed. The singing started. The procession began! With a two-beat step, the women moved in rhythm, clapping and singing. They carried their contributions to the front of the church, giving tithes of money, a chicken, a bag of beans. They joyfully gave back to the Lord a small portion of what he had given them.  

I joined in the procession but never could get the rhythm quite right. Thankfully, no one seemed to mind. The point was not a perfect performance but earnest worship. 

Psalm 95 invites each one of us to worship. Some days, this comes easily. We can’t wait to meet together with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We can’t wait to jump in line and dance down the aisle. Our hearts are primed and ready and overflow with joyful praise!   

“Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.” Psalm 95:1-2 

Some days, this doesn’t come easily. We would rather not be around others who so effortlessly, enthusiastically sing and shout. Our hearts are heavy and tired and distracted. We feel we have nothing to give. Psalm 95 seems to offer a way to worship when this is the state of our soul, too. 

“Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.” Psalm 95:6-7 

When our hearts are bowed down, maybe all we can do is humbly kneel. We can bow down and remember who the Lord is – our Maker, our God! We can bow down and remember who we are – His people, His sheep!   

Is today a day for you to sing and shout or to simply kneel and remember? The Lord welcomes your worship because He welcomes you. He delights in you! Jesus’ sacrificial death for our sins offers a way for us to be made right with God so that we can truly come into the very presence of the Lord, the great God, the great King above all gods and worship Him!