Putting on a happy face

Some sunny creations (nicknamed “monkey-faces” for their black markings) guard the way to my front porch. The other day while watering my radiant-faced pansies, I was reminded of a favorite verse from Psalm 34: “Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame” (v. 5, NIV). The word “radiant” (“lightened” in the Bible’s 1611 translation) holds the key here. It comes from the Hebrew  nahar, whose root means “to sparkle” or “be cheerful.” It conveys the idea of the sheen of a running stream. I have a few sunny “nahar” friends, and I thank the Lord for them. They lift me up and remind me to do a “face check” myself. Sunny-faced people have welcoming countenances. They exude friendliness and joy.

It’s interesting that the context of this verse was anything but a joyful time in King David’s life.  The introduction clues us to events told in 1 Samuel 21. Fleeing for his life from mad King Saul, David dropped into an enemy city, Gath, thinking Saul certainly wouldn’t follow him there.  However, David had a “history” with this enemy, in that he’d once killed their hero giant, Goliath. Realizing Gath was unsafe for him, too, David pretended to be a mad man, slobbering on the city gates. The Gathites ran him out of town. With the campfires of Gath behind him, he realized that God had spared him from a very troublesome situation. His life was still in jeopardy, but he found reason to “extol the Lord at all times” (v. 1).

This passage reminded me of Jerry Bridges’ discussion of “joy” in his book, The Practice of Godliness. Published thirty years ago by NavPress, it’s one of those books I re-read from time to time for its challenges to my own spiritual journey. Bridges said we’re not to sit around waiting for our circumstances to make us joyful. Instead, scripture reminds us to be joyful always (1 Thessalonians 5:16, Philippians 4:4).

Bridges adds (p. 135): “Just being joyful is not enough, however; we should continually be growing in joy.  It is a contradiction for a Christian who professes to be a child of the one and only God—who created the universe and who governs it for his glory and the good of his people—to wear a gloomy countenance. As John W. Sanderson [author of The Fruit of the Spirit] says, ‘It is practical atheism, for it ignores God and his attributes.’”

Got the “glums”?  Need some encouragement to put on happy face?  Read through Psalm 34. Mark the passages that encourage or challenge you. If you could see my Bible, you’d see lots of verses highlighted. One especially marked is verse 3: “Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together.” My husband and I chose that as our wedding verse.