“O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory” (Psalm 108:1).
In this passage the psalmist David expresses his determination to give praise to God. He says, “My heart is fixed,” in other words, “My mind is made up, and I am not going to change it.” What was he so determined about? He was determined that he would sing and give praise to God. The fact that he made this decision points to David’s humanity. Evidently, he did not always feel like singing. Apparently, He did not always feel like giving praise to God. So he decided he was going to sing and praise God anyway, even if he did not feel like it.
It sounds like David would have made a great choir member! Of course, he was an accomplished musician and was used by God to write at least half of the Psalms; but what I see in this verse that would have made him a great choir member is his determination to sing and give praise to God. He goes on to say, “I will sing and give praise, even with my glory.” This phrase seems to indicate that David fully intended to give his very best. Our church choirs need to be filled with singers who will determine to give their very best every time the choir sings, no matter how they feel.
“It sounds like David would have made a great choir member!"
So often, we are tired on Sunday mornings. The very fact that we may have had extra rest the night before can sometimes cause us to feel a bit lethargic. Most of us have been sitting in Sunday school, listening to someone teach the Bible for the previous 30-45 minutes and have allowed our minds and bodies to become passive. What do we need to do about that? We need to think about David’s determination in Psalm 108:1 and decide to give our very best because we have the opportunity to sing praises to God.
Too many church choir members are simply going through the motions. It is time to sing, so we sing. We have sung this song many times before, so we will sing it one more time. The Israelites only had a total of 150 songs in their songbook; they must have sung them over and over. Yet, we get tired of singing a particular choir song after two or three times. David said he would “sing and give praise.” To truly give praise to God, we must be thinking about the meaning of the words. Are you really giving praise to God, or are you simply trying to follow the part you sing? We need choir members who will sing the parts correctly and think about the meaning of the words so that they can truly be giving praise to God from the heart.
Perhaps the choir sings a song from time to time that does not motivate you. If that happens, as it surely will from time to time, motivate yourself by thinking about how good God has been to you. He saved you. Your name is written in heaven. You have eternal life. You will live in heaven forever. He has given you His Word. He has given you a great church and a wonderful pastor. Think of all of the blessings that God has bestowed upon you, and it will help you to want to sing praise to Him.
You may experience a time when you do not feel particularly spiritual, and it seems that nothing motivates you to give your best. In that event, remember that we are commanded to love God. “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). We must love Him in order to be obedient. Remember that we are commanded to give our best. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). When we begin to do what God has commanded us to do, then we are placing ourselves in a position where God can bless us.
What kind of choir member are you? How will you sing this coming Sunday morning? Let’s determine to say with David, “I will sing and give praise, even with my glory.”
E-mail Brad Boruff
