The Sound of Happiness

For her science project a middle school girl made a machine that would keep dogs happy when their owners were away.  The dog would step on a pedal and a voice recording of their owners would be heard.  I know that my dog likes to hear the sound of my voice when I am away.  The same thing is true for babies.  Nothing soothes them as much as the sound of their mother’s voice.  The psalmist said that this happiness can also belong to God’s child.  Psalm 89:15 says, “Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound.”  Verse 16 adds, “In Your Name they rejoice all day long.” 

The master’s voice, or in the case of the psalmist, the Master’s Name, brings blessing or happiness to those who know it best and rely upon it for their daily needs.  John Newton wrote the hymn “How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds”.  The first verse reads, “How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds in a believer’s ear!  It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds and drives away his fear.”  Isn’t that exactly what the sound of the mother’s voice does for the distressed baby?  There is assurance and security and certainty in that voice.  That is what we hear in the voice of God, the voice our spirit hears whenever His name is uttered. 

Sadly there are those who have an entirely different reaction to that Name.  They fear instead of being calmed.  That Name to them is the name of certain judgment.  That name to them is of the authority that would crush their unrepented evil ways and calls them to a life of righteousness.  John 3:19-20 speaks of these people as those who loved the darkness rather than the light and that they even hate the light.  It is sad because Jesus is calling them to the light and to life through Him.  But rejecting the hope that He brings leaves them only with the fear of His judgment. 

The psalmist had said that the joyful sound was for those who rejoice in the great name of God.  The dog rejoices in the presence of its owner.  The baby rejoices in the presence of its mother.  The sheep know their shepherd’s voice and follow.  The believer knows the care and love of His heavenly Father and finds it a blessed sound.  Meditating on the Apostles’ Creed or the Doxology or the Gloria Patri with their repeated use of the Name of God should bring sweet comfort and peace to the believer and happiness to their heart. 

 

 

 

Visit my website at www.davidccraig.net for inspiring Christian books.  Coming this month is my newest book Taking Care of Joe.  This is the story of a caregiver for an Alzheimer’s patient.  See how God adds His grace in the face of this horrible disease and how living a life of love is living a life NOT interrupted. 

You can now also find some of my selected devotions at www.FEBC.org. Just click "blog" on the menu bar.  You can also learn more about this great mission organization by reading through their website.