How to Accept the Gift of This Day

My brother sent me a verse the other morning, Psalm 118:24. “This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” It didn’t feel like a day to be rejoicing. I wasn’t approaching the day with an eager, happy heart. It just felt like a day; a spot in time with things that needed to be accomplished.

Ever been there?

Do you classify your days as mundane?
Are you waiting for a day that is “free?”
Do you wish for more time in your day that is not scheduled (formally or informally)?
When you look at others, do you perceive they have more time for fun than you do?
Do you secretly wish you had a fairy godmother? Afterall, life would certainly be better if things were magically perfect.
Do you spend your day completing tasks, but not necessarily living?

Defining our Perspective

I’ve been processing all sorts of things lately, including all the things on my mental to-do list. I’m trying to decide if everything I do needs to remain, or if I just need a better attitude. I often ask myself: have I over scheduled, or am I viewing life from the wrong perspective? I have yet to arrive at a definitive answer.

The verse my brother sent me offers a perspective template.

The LORD

The first thing I notice in the verse is the word LORD; it’s a hard to miss the word when it’s in all capital letters. It’s presented that way in our English Bibles because it represents God’s divine name Yahweh.

Yahweh is the name God gave for Himself to Moses in Exodus 3 when Moses protested God’s request of him to rescue the Israelites from Pharoah. God instructed Moses to tell the Israelites that Yahweh had sent him. The name Yahweh literally translates “He will be.” God’s divine name states that He is. He has always existed, and He will always continue to exist. (You can learn more about God’s divine name from The Bible Project’s video on Yahweh) https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/yhwh-lor d/

Yahweh, the God who is and will always be, He made this day. The day you and I are living, from start to finish, Almighty God created. He knows exactly what these 24 hours will bring each of us. He is aware of the memories this date holds from years past. The LORD is mindful of each emotion we will experience, large or small, positive, negative, defining or temporarily flitting through our minds.

This Day is a Gift

Yahweh, the LORD, created this day and gifted it to us. James 1:17 in The Passion Translation says, “Every gift God freely gives us is good and perfect…”

The day before us may not be exactly what we hoped. We may have more work than we can finish. We could come face to face with hardship or heartache. And God has gifted us breath to live this day out. God has presented us with 24 hours to experience and know Him better. Yahweh, the LORD, has given us an opportunity to see Him work on our behalf and catch a glimpse of His glory.

Twenty-four Hours

The second word that grabs my attention is the word “day.” One day. Twenty-four hours. I know that some mornings feel as if I’m entering a lifetime of something I don’t really want. As I read the Psalmist’s words, I’m encouraged to just deal with what is before me.

Since God is the God who has always been and always will be, He will still be available to us when the sun rises on a new day. God is also named Emmanuel, the God who is with us. We don’t have to journey yet where the day doesn’t take us. If a new day takes us to a place of suffering, God will still be, and He will be with us. We don’t need to go where we haven’t arrived yet.

I didn’t say we shouldn’t plan or follow through with necessary preparations. I know my sweet Pastor husband and I have a camping trip already scheduled for early August. We will go hiking. Every day. I will need to be able to log some serious miles. Proper planning says I must exercise appropriately so that I can enjoy those days God will gift me in the mountains, but I don’t need to worry about, or try to live those days before their time.

Rejoice; Be Glad

The third idea that draws me is the combination of rejoicing and being glad. Rejoicing and being glad sounds like unnecessary repetition. The word for rejoice is the Hebrew word “gil.” It is often translated rejoice or be glad. It has a distinguishing element of being so excited you spin around. The word translated “be glad” is the Hebrew word “samah.” It is also often translated rejoice or be glad. It has a distinguishing element though of brightening up, to cause or make cheery.

The gift of a brand-new day should so impact us, that we respond to the LORD with excited gratitude. We are to not only express our delight to Him but behave in such a way that our actions and attitudes cheer others.

More than Optimism

This is not a Pollyanna type of response to each day. When I read other verses where the word “gil” is used, I noticed that this rejoicing is always in response to something. We are to “gil” because of God’s salvation (Psalm 9:14); deliverance (Psalm 13:5); faithful love (Psalm 31:7); being in His presence or with Him (Psalm 32:11 and 35:7); and because God has revealed sin and offered us healing (Psalm 51:8).

We are to rejoice in response to all of whom God is and all that He provides us every day, regardless of the circumstances we are living. Jennie Allen in her book, Get Out of Your Head, reminds us we have a choice of what we are going to think about and dwell on. The Psalmist reminds us we are to focus on the truth that God is the LORD, and He has provided yet another day to live within His love and grace. What a marvelous gift!

Receive the Gift

This day, the one that is in front of us at this every moment, is the day God has made. He is LORD, He has crafted 24 hours for us to move and live and breathe and know Him. That is worth our gratitude.

The day before us may be difficult or filled with sadness. God isn’t expecting us to be all laughter and glee. He is calling us to allow the joy of His presence to define our behavior. Let us respond to what this day holds with rejoicing over the goodness and grace of Yahweh, the LORD. May our attitudes and our words encourage others to see the goodness and grace of God as well. Amen?

Sunrise Photo by Pablo Heimplatz on Unsplash