Sudden Outbursts!

I have never been one to follow a prescribed Bible Study plan.  Sure, I have used some but tend to grow tired of the structure after a short duration of time, although a number of years ago, I did come across the “Be” series by Warren Wiersbe and enjoyed having them as a platform from which I would delve into my daily study. 

I have had the habit of sitting down to spend time with the Lord first thing in the morning for as long as I can remember.  Usually I already have a particular scripture or subject in mind.  But at other times, I will simply hear that small-still-voice on the inside of me uttering a single word that will propel me into an hour or more of study time.

Today I sat down in my study, with Fiver comfortable reclined on the leather loveseat behind me, I turned on my computer, filled out the header on my note page and then sat back and stared at the screen saver that pictures Piper and I at a wedding we attended in the late 1980’s.  After a few moments of stunned silence, I closed my eyes and said aloud, “Lord, I got nothing!  Please show me where You want me to go today!” …and you know what happened?  Absolutely NOTHING!  So, I did what I normally have done the relatively few times that this has happened and went back to the last scripture that I had studied the previous day.

Well, that verse from Matthew 24:35 where we find Jesus teaching on the faithfulness of God and His word declares, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words (logos) shall not pass away” (KJV).  For some reason my very first thought after reading this, was that His Word is still as good, as strong and as true today as it was at any time in the past… and that got me thinking about how happy I should be today, so I took a few moments right then and there, to stop and praise the Lord.

In the midst of praise, the flood gates opened, and I was led to various other scriptures that talk about being glad, rejoicing and walking in triumph and/or victory everywhere we go… everyday of the week… and YES!  …even on Mondays!

Psalm 118:24 in the Passion Translation encourages us to proclaim, “This is the very day of the Lord that brings gladness and joy, filling our hearts with glee.”  And as I studied the context of the verse with the scriptures surrounding that statement, I noticed how the previous verse seemed to flow even better following the 24^th verse than leading into it, as it seems to complete the proclamation by declaring that “The Lord himself is the one who has done this, and it’s so amazing, so marvelous to see!” 

Those verses caused me to rejoice in the Lord even more and immediately drew me to a favorite scripture found in 2 Corinthians 2:14 where Paul in his excitement before the Lord exclaimed to his readers, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.” (KJV)  It is interesting to note that the word “triumph” used here is actually describing “a noisy acclamatory procession” (Strong’s).  Robertson’s Word Pictures says it talks of “A sudden outburst of gratitude” while John Wesley explained that “to triumph implies not only victory, but an open manifestation of it.”

When I pondered those various commentaries, I thought “WOW” because I realized that Paul was telling us that when we go to the Lord asking His assistance on any matter that concerns us, that we are to not only EXPECT to triumph and have the victory… but also to acknowledge our victory through Him with an open and deliberate manifestation of thanksgiving and praise!  It reminded me of the various times that Piper would sense a breakthrough while homeschooling our kids and suddenly jump up and start praising the Lord… while the kids looked at her like she was crazy!  But they would soon join her in a moment of worship and thanksgiving to the Lord… right there in the family room of our house… in the middle of school time!  (Let’s just say that the Berruto Homeschool wasn’t your ordinary school!)

I recently switched pharmacies and was seeing some confusion in the communication between my doctor’s office and the mail-in pharmacy that is connected to my health insurance.  On Friday I had called both parties and listened to each one painstakingly tell me that they had accurately completed their part of the transaction… and I nicely explained that for some reason… IT WASN’T WORKING!  This has happened before and today as I got out of bed, I wasn’t looking forward to dealing with the problem if it hadn’t yet been fixed!  I’ve always been a proponent of the adage that “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” but my patience was growing thin…

So, as I returned to my study after breakfast today, in order to face the music… sort-of-speak… I paused and thought about my time in the Word and Paul’s encouragement to EXPECT and then openly rejoice with “a sudden outburst of gratitude.”  And with that, I resolutely adjusted my thinking from one of frustration and DOUBT to one of FAITH and determined that I was EXPECTING to find a positive result to my situation… and sure enough… when I went online to check my pharmacy account… the needed prescription orders had been completed!

Well, that put a knowing smile on my face and I pushed back in my chair and quietly thanked the Lord… until He reminded me about my need to interject “a sudden outburst of gratitude.”  So without too much hesitation, I stood up from my seat and began to loudly praise the Lord… but I had a sense that it wasn’t enough… so I proceeded to jump up and down with both a vocal and physical demonstration of thanksgiving and praise for the Lord’s answer to my prayer… and just like with the kids years before, the dog looked at me like I was crazy!  But I am sure that if he realized what was going on, that he would have joined in with my celebration!

So, hopefully my words of REJOICING in the Lord, EXPECTING His victory and TRIUMPH in the faith-filled requests that you bring before him… and then taking the time (and putting aside self-consciousness) to celebrate the good report He caused with “a sudden outburst of gratitude” to Him… has hit home in your heart! 

Give it a try… for not only do I believe that the Lord desires and enjoys our loud and excited heartfelt thanksgiving and rejoicing before Him… but it is good for us as well! (See: Proverbs 17:22)

Let me know how it feels!  Have a great new week while you REJOICE unabashedly before Him!