Message summary: We must by our own volition rejoice and be glad, for whatever God has in store for us each day, since this is the key to victory no matter the circumstance.

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“This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). “But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them” (Acts 16:25).

Let us live with the Psalmist’s perspective in our first daily text, “This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it”. In fact many of us have sung the words of this Psalm set to music. It’s also a great verse to memorize and quote often to oneself, to family members and in gatherings of like minded believers.

It’s a great perspective to live by, for it is applicable each day of our lives, to recognize that each day is created by God: "the day which the Lord has made". We need to make it our resolve to rejoice and be glad for that which God has in store for us this and each day. This is the key to victory no matter the circumstance. 

Consider the example Paul and Silas set for us during a time of great persecution.

In Philippi magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods as the crowds joined in the attack. They were severely flogged and then thrown into prison with a jailer assigned to watch them carefully (see Acts 16:22-24). We can probably agree they were not having what we would call a good day!

"But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them" (Acts 16:25).

We don’t know what hymns of praise Paul and Silas were singing in Acts 16 when they were imprisoned. It sure wasn’t the hymns we sing since at that point they wouldn’t have been written! But if they had been they might have chosen songs like “Blessed Assurance”, “What A Friend We Have In Jesus”, “It Is Well With My Soul”. Of course in our lifetime songs of praise continue to be written such as "Ten Thousand Reasons" (Bless the Lord O My Soul).

However the Psalms were considered the hymnbook for the ancient Israelites and people during the Bible times. Since their hearts and minds were fixed upon Jesus, right in the midst of their extreme pain and suffering, it is certainly possible that Paul and Silas also found comfort and assurance in what we know as Psalm 118:24, "This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it".

Be encouraged today, Hebrews 3:13.

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily prayer: Father, we thank You for this day, the day which You have made. Like the Psalmist, we look to You to “bring us word of Your unfailing love, for we have put our trust in You.” We expect good and not harm from Your unfailing love, so we struggle when the circumstances of our lives would appear otherwise. As we mature in our faith help us to weigh the experiences of our life here on earth with the eternal outcome of the many blessings You have waiting for us in heaven. Help us to recognize that there is much we endure on this side that serves as an example to others such as the jailers and other prisoners who looked on and listened when Paul and Silas sang in prison, and for the millions who've read this passage all the years since. The Fruit of the Spirit can be exemplified in believers who rise each morning with the joyful proclamation, “This is the day which the lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Amen.

See Psalms 118:25, 143:8