When I think of Psalm 103, my mind goes to the song 10000 Reasons (Bless the Lord). Based off an old hymn inspired by this passage, it’s such a relatable, genuine expression of just how much we have to really be thankful for in God. Matt Redman said when writing this song: “We live beneath an unceasing flow of goodness, kindness, greatness, and holiness, and every day we’re given reason after reason why Jesus is so completely and utterly worthy of our highest and best devotion.” Amen, Matt! Everything God does to deserve praise is so abundant & convicting that when we are devoted to worship, living turns into an act of worship, because every little thing we do & everything within us reflects His providence and glorifies Him – “Bless the Lord, o my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name.”
This psalm acts as such a refreshing list of just a few of the qualities that paint us a picture of who God is, and act as a good grounding point for me when I need to be reminded of the important things. Reading through, I think: how has God displayed this attribute in my life lately? How can I honor Christ by learning from these qualities & using these lessons to glorify Him through my own thoughts & actions more than the day before? We see throughout this psalm how God is:
- Forgiving & healing (v. 3)
- Redeems us from sin (v. 4)
- Satisfies us, renews us (v. 5)
- Righteous & just (v. 6)
- Revealer of all knowledge & wisdom (v. 7)
- Full of mercy & grace (v. 8)
- Genuinely forgiving (v. 9)
- Merciful towards our wrongdoings (v. 10)
- Boundless in love, all-encompassing (v. 11-12)
- A sternly compassionate teacher (v. 13)
- Eternally steadfast (v. 14-17)
- Rewarding of faithfulness & faithful in kind (v. 18)
- Sovereignly & ultimately in charge (v. 19)
This only scratches the surface of God’s qualities, but going over all our reasons to praise the Lord is a great reminder of how blessed we really are. Scripture helps & encourages me through these reminders to want to be more Christ-like, to share His love with this world better – increasingly turning my life into an act of worship. Psalm 34:1 is a great missive to this regard: “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” I want more and more to be forever singing God’s praises, to where my existence is seen as the act of praise that it is; as Paul put in 1 Phillipians 1:20, “that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.” This Psalm rejuvenates me and strengthens my need to surrender my life to Christ and to pray for Him to transform it into a candle of His light and a song of His praise. I ask you join me in prayer today as well, that God could move in & through us that we would sing His praises through our words & all we do. Though this, may our lives be beautiful and contagious songs of his countless blessings and immeasurable glory.