11.24--Reasons to Rejoice (Thanksgiving Sermon at an Interfaith Service))

It was January of 1983. They had just finished recording the ninth and what was supposed to be final track for their next album, but it didn’t feel complete. One more song was needed. There was only one problem, though: They were out of time. Their studio time was maxed out, and they were about to be kicked to the streets.

At this point, the lead singer does something kind of crazy: he opens his Bible. A certain passage jumps out at him almost immediately, and with the precious little bit of studio time they have left, they put the Scripture to song. It took ten minutes to write, ten minutes to record, and ten minutes to mix. The album was complete because of this song, and it became an instant fan favorite.

This song, “40”, has closed more than 300 U2 concerts around the world since then.

Now, I have to confess to y’all: I’m a huge U2 fan, and this song is one of my absolute favorites. The verses come straight from Psalm 40—hence the name: “I waited patiently for the Lord. He turned and heard my cry. He lifted me up out of the pit, out of the miry clay. I will sing, sing a new song! He set my feet upon the rock and made my footsteps firm. Many will see, many will see and hear. I will sing, sing a new song.” The chorus comes from the first track on the same album, “Sunday Bloody Sunday”. The words are a cry out to God: “How long to sing this song?” And this makes matters even more interesting; the words of the chorus allude to another psalm, Psalm 13. “How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and have sorrow in my heart?”

Did you catch it? Bono does something in this song that many pastors don’t do in their sermons: he uses two different parts of Scripture to make his point. And what an interesting point it is! You see, Psalm 40 and Psalm 13 are two very different kinds of songs. Psalm 40 is what is called a Psalm of consolation or connection. King David is praising God for all God has done for himàsaving him from his dark places, placing him safely upon God’s high place, putting a song on his heart and giving him reasons to rejoice. This song rejoices in God’s saving work.

Psalm 13 is very different. It is about disconnection and lament. When King David wrote this psalm, he was not in the happiest of moods. He was suffering, and this song is a cry out in frustration to God. “How long do I have to deal with this, Lord? How long will I have to continue feeling cut off from You and alone?”

And these two psalms collide and are held together with extremely catchy music.

How is this possible? How can we hold this psalm of rejoicing so close to a psalm of lament? I mean, can we say that the praises of Psalm 40 are in answer to the suffering of Psalm 13? It might make sense, in a way. David brings his petitions before the Lord in an emotive way that is beyond what many of us are comfortable with. Later, David brings his thankfulness to God through song as well. This is absolutely possible. Or maybe we can say that they shouldn’t be held together, that they aren’t dealing with the same issue. During different periods in one’s life, it is completely plausible to experience both integration and dis-integration. Maybe those psalms have nothing more to do with each than that they were both written for God. Maybe U2 should not have merged them together.

Either of these is plausible. Either could be true.

But I think that Bono might have (maybe even unknowingly) stumbled upon an even deeper truth than either of the two previous answers can give. By mashing together these words of rejoicing with these words of suffering, we reach a foundational truth of our faith: Even in the midst of suffering, we have reason to rejoice.

You see, we are a people of joy.

Now, joy does not at all mean that you have to be optimistic or that every bad event brings about some kind of good one. In fact, it is very possible to pessimistic, to even believe that sometimes bad things happen for no apparent rhyme or reason, and still be a person of joy. And this isn’t happiness either, for happiness is a fleeting emotion. No, joy is a state of being, an identity, a stabilizing force in a rickety and volatile world.

Joy is why Joseph could stay faithful to God even after being sold into slavery by his brothers. Joy is why Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego can stand strong even in the face of death. Joy is why King David can stand up and enter the place of worship after receiving the news that his son was dead. Joy is why Job is able to hear about the deaths of his children and destruction of his property and still say “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.”

Friends, on this Thanksgiving holiday, remember that we have this joy as well. It is the joy that reminds that, though this world can be dark, scary, and evil, we have a God that loves us and who has promised to always walk with us. We have a God who constantly speaks to us the promise that we are not alone and this is not all there is in life for us. We have a God who hears our cries and rescues us from the slimy pits of this world.

We have this joy. Joy is why we take this time each year to remember that even in the midst of this broken world we do have things to be thankful for. Joy is why, even when we are losing our jobs, still struggling with equal rights for all, and are grieving at the loss of loved ones, we can stand up and continue on. This is why we truly can live out the challenge of Paul: “Rejoice in the Lord always! Again, I say rejoice!”

So, during this time of Thanksgiving especially, may we remember the faith lesson that we learn from King David and U2. May we remember that we can and at all times should find ourselves lifting up praises to God while at the same time sharing with God our sufferings. And may we always live out the joy that we have in our Lord.

Happy Thanksgiving, and Amen.