Our God Who Sings

December 15, 2024; Zep 3:14-18; Phil 4:4-7; Third Sunday of Advent

Paul tells us in today’s second reading that we should rejoice in the Lord always. How is that possible? We can certainly rejoice in the Lord when a healthy baby daughter is born, when we meet the person with whom we wish to share our life, or when we receive a significant promotion at work. But how are we to rejoice when there are crippling divisions in our family, when the person we love rejects us, or the boss informs us that our services are no longer needed. How can we rejoice, always? 

The prophet Zephaniah in today’s first reading provides the answer. Zephaniah not only tells us we are to rejoice, he also provides the reason we are to rejoice. We are to rejoice not because of our circumstances, whether they be good or bad. We are to rejoice because of God’s relationship with us. We are to rejoice because God rejoices in us. Zephaniah puts it this way: God rejoices over us with gladness. God renews us in his love. God sings joyfully because of us, as one sings at a festival. What a remarkable image of God. God not only loves us. God is crazy about us. When God thinks of us, God breaks into song. The Hebrew word for song can also mean dance. So, when God thinks of us, God gets up from his throne and jumps around with excitement. Zephaniah insists that God’s love for us in animating, exhilarating, breathtaking. And because God loves us in that overwhelming way, there is always reason for us to rejoice.

There may be times when we get down on ourselves because of a mistake we have made, a rejection we have experienced, or simply our inability to get things done. Zephaniah reminds us that although we may think less of ourselves, God always thinks more of us. God is always excited to love us. There can be times when our burdens weigh us down, when we worry about someone we love, when we must struggle to make ends meet financially, or when we are fearful about our future. We must carry those burdens and deal with them as best we can. But we must never forget that God’s love for us remains strong and constant. Remembering that love can give us hope. It can give us cause for rejoicing.

If we tie our joy to times of blessing, we can lose hope in times of trial. That’s why Zephaniah’s message is so important. Because if we rejoice because God rejoices in us, we can rejoice always.