Every time the front door opens the weiners bark.
Every time.
For those of you who don’t know, we have Dachshunds. Weiner dogs. Miniatures.
And they bark when the front door opens. Incessantly.
Every. Single. Time.
Until they figure out who it is. To do that, they have to run around the couch to the top of the stairs. They obviously can’t see OVER the couch, so…
They generally transition from the initial barking to one of three variations:
If you’re a friend and female, welcome to our house! We’re happy to see you, so we’ll stop barking!
If you’re a friend and male, you’re obviously an axe murderer come to kill our entire family and dump them in the river. So go away, go away, go away! And the barking never stops. Never, never stops.
However, if you’re family we’re gonna wiggle wiggle like an octopus! So happy to see you! Wiggles, wiggles everywhere!
Every time one of our family members walk through the door, it’s like the weiners are seeing us for the very first time all over again.
It’s as if their entire bodies are shouting, “We’re so excited you’re home! So excited you’re back!”
Leaping and jumping and wagging and wiggling and so very full of joy they just can’t hold it in!
David tells us something similar about being in the Lord’s presence:
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Psalm 16:11, ESV
Sometimes I get excited to be in God’s presence. Excited like the weiners do when I come home.
Other times I’m dragging my carcass into God’s presence simply because I know I need to.
Which is kinda the point.
In HIS presence there is fullness of joy. For ME.
How do I grow into fullness of joy? By being in his presence.
Today, get into God’s presence. And let his full measure of joy spill over your heart and mind.
If you like, pause and listen to this Scripture Song. It was created by combining Psalm 139:23-24 with the Psalm 16:11 scripture above. You can find it here: https://youtu.be/XZ30xbf6HbI
Take time to linger in God’s presence.
That’s worship.
–Pastor Steve.