Psalm 96:11-13 “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it.  Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord; for he is coming...”

Can you hear it?  If you listen very carefully with your whole soul can you hear the songs?  The heavens and the earth, the sea, the fields and the trees along with everything living within them; they all sing and rejoice!  Listen to their voices, hear their songs.  Listen to the praise and worship that all of creation brings to the Lord.  I can almost hear heaven and nature singing in joy.  As the song begins to seep deeper into my soul, I cannot keep silent any longer.  My heart joins in the song and I am transported to a new and beautiful place.  Listen until you hear it.  Listen for the angel songs, the roar of the sea and the exultation of the fields.  Listen for the rejoicing of the trees in the forest and when your soul is filled with their rejoicing join in with all creation singing praises to the God of gods; the Lord of lords for salvation has come to all through a babe in Bethlehem.  Joy to the world!

Lord,

There are many sounds we hear each moment of our days.  There are moans of sadness and pain; there are cries of suffering and death.  We cannot ignore those sounds but we also must listen for the sounds of joy and love, peace and hope for they are there as well.  Help us bring those sounds and songs that rejoice in you into our souls and give us a song to join into.  As our heart grab hold of the joy in this season, let our voices share that joy with the world.  All glory to you forever and ever.  Amen.