Prayer of the Day: Almighty God, gracious Keeper of our souls, You preserve our lives, sustain our faith, and keep our feet from slipping. Grant that in every trial, sickness, fear, and sorrow, we may cling to Christ, who has conquered sin and death for us. Fill our hearts with confidence in Your mercy, that whether we live or die, we may make a joyful shout to You; through Jesus Christ, our risen Lord. Amen.

Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth! Sing out the honor of His name; Make His praise glorious. Say to God, “How awesome are Your works! Through the greatness of Your power Your enemies shall submit themselves to You. All the earth shall worship You And sing praises to You; They shall sing praises to Your name.” Selah Come and see the works of God; He is awesome in His doing toward the sons of men. He turned the sea into dry land; They went through the river on foot. There we will rejoice in Him. He rules by His power forever; His eyes observe the nations; Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah Oh, bless our God, you peoples! And make the voice of His praise to be heard, Who keeps our soul among the living, And does not allow our feet to be moved.”

Grace, mercy, and peace are yours from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Dear friends in Christ:

It has been quite a week here, hasn’t it? Yes, it has. An expectant mother in her ninth month was in a car accident. For the first twenty minutes after the accident, she wondered whether her baby might be dead. She was understandably frightened and deeply upset. We also had a baby, who had been born only two weeks earlier, in the hospital with a fever, breathing trouble, and crying. He started to improve a little on the day I went to visit him, but then he became worse and nearly died. I also visited another member who had been hospitalized with an infection. He had been sent home, only to be sent back to the hospital again.

Three different families in one week. Three hospitalizations. Lives threatened. Hearts shaken. Nearly everyone in the congregation felt it somehow. It has been quite a week, hasn’t it?

That is why the opening words of Psalm 66 almost strike us with holy surprise: “Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!” Make a joyful shout? After a car accident? After a newborn child nearly dies? After sickness, fear, weakness, and uncertainty? Make a joyful shout?

In Hebrew, there are several different words for expressing joy. There are also several words for singing, praising, and celebrating. The Old Testament gives us a whole treasury of words for joy before the Lord. But the word used here in Psalm 66 is especially vivid. It means a victorious shout of joy. It is not a quiet smile. It is not a polite nod. It is the shout of triumph after the battle has been won.

We might compare it to the shout used in martial arts. Students are often taught to cry out when they strike. The shout is not only noise. It is breath, force, strength, and confidence all coming out together.

Or think of the Marines. Someone mentions the Marines, and almost without thinking comes the shout: “Oorah!” It is the cry of belonging, courage, and victory. The shout comes from identity. It comes from confidence.

That is the kind of word Psalm 66 uses: “Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!”

But how can we do that? How can we give such a shout when there are so many problems in the world? How can we shout for joy when mothers are afraid, babies are sick, loved ones are in the hospital, and death seems to hover close by?

The answer comes in verse 9: “Who keeps our soul among the living, and does not allow our feet to be moved.” God keeps our soul among the living. God does not allow our feet to slip. Literally, the psalm says that God does not place our feet into slippage. That is a Hebrew way of saying that God holds us up. He keeps us from falling away. He preserves us. He guards us. He keeps us standing when everything around us trembles. That is why we can make a joyful shout. We can shout for joy because God takes care of us.

But the first phrase is especially worth noticing: “Who keeps our soul among the living.” The Hebrew word often translated “soul” is nephesh. That word can be difficult to capture in English because it is used in many ways. It can refer to the throat. It can refer to breath. It can refer to life. It can refer to the whole person. It is often translated “soul,” but it does not always mean “soul” in the narrow way we sometimes use that word.

The difference between a living person and a dead body is that the living person has breath, life, nephesh. So when the psalm says that God keeps our nephesh among the living, it means that God preserves our life. He keeps our body and soul. He sustains our breath. He holds us in the land of the living.

And we have seen that this week. That mother, who was expecting in her ninth month, was in a car accident, but two days ago she gave birth to a healthy baby. That two-week-old baby, who had been in the hospital, was preserved by God’s mercy. The elder who was in the hospital twice for an infection is sitting here with us today.

Yes, we can make a joyful shout to God, because He has placed our bodies among the living. He has delivered. He has preserved. He has kept our feet from slipping.

But then we must ask the harder question: What if He does not? What if the baby had died? What if the mother had not been spared? What if the infection had taken the life of our brother? What if God does not preserve our body among the living in this world?

One year ago today, one of our members died. So was Psalm 66 no longer true for him? Could he no longer make a joyful shout to God? No. The truth is even greater. Even though John’s body is no longer among the living here on earth, his soul is with the living God. He has seen firsthand what Jesus promises: “Whoever believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.”

We who believe in Jesus know that the wages of sin is death. Death came into the world because of sin. Death is not natural. Death is not our friend. Death is the enemy. But Jesus came to take away sin. Jesus came to purge sin. Jesus came to bear sin in His own body on the tree. And Jesus succeeded. Your sin has been forgiven. Easter proves it.

Christ is risen. The tomb is empty. Sin has been paid for. Death has been defeated. The grave has lost its victory. The sting of death has been removed.

Therefore, even when our breath leaves our body, even when our body is laid in the ground, even when our earthly life comes to an end, the believer does not truly taste death. We pass from this world into life eternal. So whether we live or whether we die, we can make a joyful shout to God. He has given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

That does not mean there are no trials. The rest of Psalm 66 makes that clear. God’s people pass through fire and water. They suffer. They are tested. They are burdened. But God uses these trials for our good. He refines faith. He strengthens hope. He teaches us to cling not to our health, not to our plans, not to our strength, but to Him. And in the end, He brings His people out into abundance.

So yes, it has been quite a week. Lives were threatened. Families were afraid. Many hearts were heavy. But through it all, God has kept us. He has preserved life. He has sustained faith. He has held our feet from slipping.

And even when He allows death to come, He does not abandon His people to death. In Christ, death becomes the doorway into life.

Therefore, “Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth! Sing out the honor of His name; make His praise glorious.” God has kept our soul among the living. He has kept our feet from slipping. He has delivered us in Christ. He has given us victory over sin and death. So let the shout rise—not because life is easy, but because in Christ we are victorious. Amen.

—Pastor Johnathan Schnose

Bethel Ev. Lutheran Church Morris, MN

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