He Rejoices

"The LORD your God in your midst,

The Mighty One, will save;

He will rejoice over you with gladness,

He will quiet you with His love,

He will rejoice over you with singing.”

-Zephaniah 3:17

Can you imagine God rejoicing over you to the point that He breaks out in song?

So often we attribute such "strong" and "fatherly" characteristics to God that it's almost like we think it is unlike His character to show such a wild display of love for us. We agree that He is our Father, that He shelters us, provides for us, watches over us, plans a great future for us, hold us in His arms in love, corrects us when we stray, and always forgives and welcomes us with a loving embrace. We see Jesus teaching and reaching out to the poor, the sinners, the broken, the sick. He has compassion on us and even cries. But how many times do we close our eyes and imagine God singing?

Maybe I'm the only one, but I don't really picture God singing over anyone. He spoke Creation into existence with authority; He spoke and demons trembled and fled from His presence. Yet somehow to try to begin to comprehend what it would be like to hear and see Him sing seems overwhelming to me. Perhaps that's because I can only think of God's voice and song to be the most beautiful thing we will ever hear, the most wonderful sight we will ever see. And to think that we are the reason for His song of rejoicing--that we cause such a powerful expression of joy...well, that's something that gives greater encouragement, more comfort, deeper peace, and stronger joy than anything else.

We spend our worship singing praises to Him, or listening to praise songs. Whether we can sing or not, we lift up our voices when we hurt and when we rejoice in order to bask in His presence and show our devotion to Him. I don't know about everyone else, but I'd never imagined Him singing back to us. When we sing, when we laugh, when we cry, when we turn to Him for answers or just to thank Him for who He is, what words of love is He singing over us?