“The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17).
Sometimes I think we approach God feeling like He has to love us because He is God. Like we are a chore He must check off His divine to-do list. We find ourselves thinking, “I know God loves me, but does He actually like me?” But those thoughts don’t do justice to how God feels about His children.
Did you know that God does more than just tolerate you? More even than to love you with an everlasting, limitless love?
My friend, He delights in you. He finds great joy in you. Zephaniah 3:17 tells us that when you are His child “He will exult over you with loud singing.”
The word translated “He will exult” means just that, “to shout in exultation or rejoice.” And in case you are wondering, the definition of exult is to “show or feel great happiness, joy, or triumph.” And in order for it to really sink in, that sentiment is repeated a second time when Zephaniah uses the expression “loud singing,” which also means to cry out in jubilation.
When was the last time you were so excited to be with someone you literally cried out with indescribable joy, unable to contain yourself? That is how our God feels about us.
When we turn from our sin and run into the arms of Jesus our Savior, the God of the universe shouts with joy and overflows with jubilation (Luke 15:7; Luke 15:10). For us.
Until next time,
Shelby
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