Psalm 5:11–12
But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.
For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.
Men are, that they might have joy,” Lehi declared to Jacob,41 but some days, joy seems to be in short supply. However, the Psalmist gives us the truest counsel that can be given for obtaining and keeping that elusive delight. We are to put our trust in the Lord and shout for joy that He is our defender, our protector, our benefactor, our God. Just to hear His name triggers thoughts of His character and goodness. Names do that when we think of people we love. The sacred name of God—which we are commanded not to take in vain—is a source of joy unequaled, bringing to us a sense of being dearly loved and completely safe, encompassed “as with a shield.”
St. Augustine once observed that men wish to be happy even when they live so as to make happiness impossible. What a blessing, then—or at least it ought to be—when a key is given as to how we can make happiness possible. How often people come toward joy like a child to a shop window, gazing inside with great sadness that they do not have the coins to make a purchase, when in fact the item we long for is free. It is every shopper’s gift just for the taking. “He that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”42 True joy is available for the same price. Put your trust in God. Love Him and love His name. Hearken diligently unto Him.
“True joy is the earnest [money] which we have of heaven,” wrote one of England’s greatest cleric/poets. “It is the treasure of the soul, and therefore should be laid in a safe place, and nothing in this world is safe to place it in.”43 If we want real joy, we must put our trust in God. The return on that investment will be joy and shielded protection—with an eternal increase in the process.
Notes