“Give unto the LORD, O ye mighty, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: The God of glory thundereth: The LORD is upon many waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; The voice of the LORD is full of majesty. The voice of the LORD breaketh the cedars; Yea, the LORD breaketh the cedars of Lebanon. He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.”
Psalm 29:1-6 KJV,https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.29.1-6.KJV
Responding to God at All Times
Throughout our lives, we will all experience both suffering and joy. We'll have times of great grief and times of overflowing happiness. Sometimes, they’ll be separate seasons—but other times, these experiences come together.
In either case and in any situation, James expected Christians to come to God. If someone was suffering, prayer was the call to action. If someone was cheerful, people were to pause and praise God.
This might seem obvious, but when suffering clouds our thinking, we can sometimes forget to prioritize prayer. And when things are going well and we're feeling cheerful, it’s easy to just enjoy our season and not stop long enough to praise God for it. But every season of life is actually just an opportunity to put into practice what James wrote about…
When we are suffering, let us pray. When those around us are suffering, let us pray. When we are cheerful or happy, let us praise God. When others are happy, let us praise God with ...