Psalms 117 (Contemporary English Version)
- All of you nations, come praise the LORD! Let everyone praise him.
- His love for us is wonderful; his faithfulness never ends. Shout praises to the LORD!
With only two verses, this is the shortest of the psalms. It is thought by some to have been used in public worship somewhat as the Doxologies were used in Christian worship of the past century. It is a call to all nations and people to worship the Lord, and the reason given is the greatness of His faithful love to us and the eternal nature of His faithfulness. Such characteristics on the part of our Creator deserve a response on our part. And what should that response be? Faithful church attendance? Charity for the poor? I would suggest that this should not be our first response but should follow our first response. I believe our first and lasting response should be relational. I don't think God is so much interested in our pious duties as He is our relationship with Him. And the mark of any significant relationship is time spent together in one's company and in sharing one's thoughts and concerns and feelings. I believe our relationship with God should be no different. It should be characterized by time spent reading God's word and conversing with Him in prayer. I have to wonder about the nature and depth of one's relationship to God when they don't seem to have time or make time to spend with God in this type of relationship. It makes everything else we do to show our love seem superficial.
Serving God should also be our response to His faithful and enduring love to us, but I believe service should follow the relational part, not replace it. When we love someone we not only spend time with them, we desire to do things for them. Out of our love for God we will want to be a part of the church He established, worshiping and serving alongside others who are a part of His family. But again, these do not replace the relational part of spending time with God.
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